Postdoctoral position in plant metapopulation dynamics
Posted: Wed Dec 11, 2013 10:02 amPostdoctoral position in plant metapopulation dynamics : introducing seed dormancy in colonization/ extinction models at Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CNRS, UMR 5175, France).
We are seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Fellow to investigate plant metapopulation dynamics, using a combination of methodological development and data analysis. The post-doctoral position is funded for one year by Région Languedoc Roussillon and is part of a “Chercheur d’Avenir” project (2012-15).
Context: Metapopulation dynamics hypothesize that the spatial distribution of species at the regional scale results from extinction/colonization dynamics of local populations. Spatially realistic models have been developed in animals (Hanski and Gaggioti, 2004) which allow characterizing colonization kernels and extinction parameters from temporal presence/absence data in a set of suitable patches. Plant dynamics has largely been left apart from the metapopulation dynamics framework and the applicability of metapopulation framework to plants has been questioned in the literature (Freckleton and Watkinson, 2002). One of the reasons is the existence of seed dormancy with persistent seed bank in the soil that allows a population to recover without dispersal events even after a long period of absence of reproductive plants. The postdoctoral project is part of a 4-year research project on plant metapopulations which aims at (1) developing models for the joint estimation of dispersal, dormancy and extinction from presence/absence data (2) analyzing field data from plant metapopulations. Using hidden Markov models (Mackenzie et al, 2009), we have recently shown that (i) dormancy (as well as dispersal and extinction) can be inferred from simulated time series of presence–absence data , (ii) hidden Markov models offer a reliable way to estimate colonization and extinction rates for plant metapopulations with a seed bank (Fréville et al, 2013).
Post-doctoral project description: The first aim of the postdoctoral project is to improve the model of Fréville et al (2013) by introducing, (1) limited dispersal (dispersal kernel), (2) habitat heterogeneity, for various metapopulation scenarios (Levins’ model, island/mainland models, rescue effect, see Gotelli, 1991). The second aim of the postdoctoral project is to analyze available plant metapopulation data that have already been collected in annual plant communities in urban alignments of patches around trees in Montpellier and Paris (Pr. Machon group, MNHN Paris). Metapopulation parameters’ estimates will for instance allow testing evolutionary ecology hypotheses such as the dispersal dormancy trade-off. For more information, please contact Dr Pierre-Olivier Cheptou by email (pierre-olivier.cheptou@cefe.cnrs.fr).
Research environment: The postdoctoral fellow will jointly work with evolutionary ecologists (P.-O Cheptou and H. Fréville) and biostatisticians (R. Pradel and R. Choquet) at the CEFE-CNRS (UMR 5175) in Montpellier (France) in the Biodiversity and Conservation department. The CEFE (http://www.cefe.cnrs.fr/) is a large french research center in Ecology with ~ 140 staff members. It develops research in a wide range of disciplines, including evolutionary biology, population dynamics, quantitative genetics and conservation biology.
Qualifications: A PhD degree in Ecology/Evolutionary Ecology is required. The applicant should be well acquainted with biostatistics and theories in evolutionary ecology. Documented experience in programming (R, Winbugs, Matlab, etc) and in basic mathematical tools is required. The ideal candidate will be able to work both independently and as part of a team.
Starting date: 1st of March 2014 ; the preferred start date is slightly flexible and will depend on the timeframe of the most qualified applicant.
Gross salary: 2300 euros minimum (depending on experience)
Application: The application deadline is February 15th 2014 and interviews will take place shortly afterwards. Candidates interested in the position should send (1) a cover letter summarizing their research interests and expertise relevant to the project, (2) a Curriculum Vitae, (3) a listing of publications, and (4) the names and contact information for at least two referees who can provide recommendations. The application should be sent as a single pdf file to P.-O Cheptou (pierre-olivier.cheptou@cefe.cnrs.fr).
Related publications :
Cheptou P.-O. A. Dornier. 2012 Urban metapopulation dynamics and evolution of dispersal traits in the weed Crepis sancta, chapter 24 pp 304-3013 in “ Informed Dispersal and Spatial Evolutionary Ecology,” J. Clobert, M. Baguette, T. Benton, and J. Bullock, eds. Oxford University Press
Choquet, R., Rouan, L., Pradel, R. (2009). Program E-SURGE: a software application for fitting Multievent models Series: Environmental and Ecological Statistics , Vol. 3 Thomson, David L.; Cooch, Evan G.; Conroy, Michael J. (Eds.) p 845-865
Dornier, A. & P.-O. Cheptou 2013 Inferring contemporary dispersal processes in plant metapopulations: comparison of direct and indirect estimates of dispersal for the annual species Crepis sancta. 111, 1-7 Heredity
Dornier, A., Pons, V. & P.-O. Cheptou 2011 Colonization and extinction dynamics of an annual plant metapopulation in an urban environment Oikos Vol: 120 (8) pp1240-1246
Freckleton RP, Watkinson AR (2002) Large-scale spatial dynamics of plants: metapopulations, regional ensembles and patchy populations. Journal of Ecology 90: 419-434.
Fréville H, Choquet R, Pradel R, Cheptou P.-O (2013) Inferring seed bank from hidden Markov models: new insights into metapopulation dynamics in plants. Journal of Ecology 101, 1572-1580.
Gotelli, N. J. 1991. Metapopulation models – the rescue effect, the propagule rain, and the core-satellite hypothesis. – Am. Nat. 138: 768–776.
Hanski, I. & Gaggiotti, O. (Eds.) 2004. Ecology, genetics, and evolution of metapopulations. Edited by Hanski, I. & Gaggiotti, O. Elsevier Academic Press, Amsterdam, 696 pp.
Hanski, I. & Gilpin, M.E. 1997. Metapopulation Biology: Ecology, Genetics, and Evolution. Academic Press, San Diego, 512 p.
Levins, R. (1969). "Some demographic and genetic consequences of environment heterogeneity for biological control." Bull. Entomol. Soc. Am. 15: 237–240.
Mackenzie, D. I., et al. 2009. Modeling species occurrence dynamics with multiple states and imperfect detection. Ecology 90:823-835.
Pradel, R. (2005). "Multievent: An extension of multistate capture-recapture models to uncertain states." Biometrics 61: 442-447.
We are seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Fellow to investigate plant metapopulation dynamics, using a combination of methodological development and data analysis. The post-doctoral position is funded for one year by Région Languedoc Roussillon and is part of a “Chercheur d’Avenir” project (2012-15).
Context: Metapopulation dynamics hypothesize that the spatial distribution of species at the regional scale results from extinction/colonization dynamics of local populations. Spatially realistic models have been developed in animals (Hanski and Gaggioti, 2004) which allow characterizing colonization kernels and extinction parameters from temporal presence/absence data in a set of suitable patches. Plant dynamics has largely been left apart from the metapopulation dynamics framework and the applicability of metapopulation framework to plants has been questioned in the literature (Freckleton and Watkinson, 2002). One of the reasons is the existence of seed dormancy with persistent seed bank in the soil that allows a population to recover without dispersal events even after a long period of absence of reproductive plants. The postdoctoral project is part of a 4-year research project on plant metapopulations which aims at (1) developing models for the joint estimation of dispersal, dormancy and extinction from presence/absence data (2) analyzing field data from plant metapopulations. Using hidden Markov models (Mackenzie et al, 2009), we have recently shown that (i) dormancy (as well as dispersal and extinction) can be inferred from simulated time series of presence–absence data , (ii) hidden Markov models offer a reliable way to estimate colonization and extinction rates for plant metapopulations with a seed bank (Fréville et al, 2013).
Post-doctoral project description: The first aim of the postdoctoral project is to improve the model of Fréville et al (2013) by introducing, (1) limited dispersal (dispersal kernel), (2) habitat heterogeneity, for various metapopulation scenarios (Levins’ model, island/mainland models, rescue effect, see Gotelli, 1991). The second aim of the postdoctoral project is to analyze available plant metapopulation data that have already been collected in annual plant communities in urban alignments of patches around trees in Montpellier and Paris (Pr. Machon group, MNHN Paris). Metapopulation parameters’ estimates will for instance allow testing evolutionary ecology hypotheses such as the dispersal dormancy trade-off. For more information, please contact Dr Pierre-Olivier Cheptou by email (pierre-olivier.cheptou@cefe.cnrs.fr).
Research environment: The postdoctoral fellow will jointly work with evolutionary ecologists (P.-O Cheptou and H. Fréville) and biostatisticians (R. Pradel and R. Choquet) at the CEFE-CNRS (UMR 5175) in Montpellier (France) in the Biodiversity and Conservation department. The CEFE (http://www.cefe.cnrs.fr/) is a large french research center in Ecology with ~ 140 staff members. It develops research in a wide range of disciplines, including evolutionary biology, population dynamics, quantitative genetics and conservation biology.
Qualifications: A PhD degree in Ecology/Evolutionary Ecology is required. The applicant should be well acquainted with biostatistics and theories in evolutionary ecology. Documented experience in programming (R, Winbugs, Matlab, etc) and in basic mathematical tools is required. The ideal candidate will be able to work both independently and as part of a team.
Starting date: 1st of March 2014 ; the preferred start date is slightly flexible and will depend on the timeframe of the most qualified applicant.
Gross salary: 2300 euros minimum (depending on experience)
Application: The application deadline is February 15th 2014 and interviews will take place shortly afterwards. Candidates interested in the position should send (1) a cover letter summarizing their research interests and expertise relevant to the project, (2) a Curriculum Vitae, (3) a listing of publications, and (4) the names and contact information for at least two referees who can provide recommendations. The application should be sent as a single pdf file to P.-O Cheptou (pierre-olivier.cheptou@cefe.cnrs.fr).
Related publications :
Cheptou P.-O. A. Dornier. 2012 Urban metapopulation dynamics and evolution of dispersal traits in the weed Crepis sancta, chapter 24 pp 304-3013 in “ Informed Dispersal and Spatial Evolutionary Ecology,” J. Clobert, M. Baguette, T. Benton, and J. Bullock, eds. Oxford University Press
Choquet, R., Rouan, L., Pradel, R. (2009). Program E-SURGE: a software application for fitting Multievent models Series: Environmental and Ecological Statistics , Vol. 3 Thomson, David L.; Cooch, Evan G.; Conroy, Michael J. (Eds.) p 845-865
Dornier, A. & P.-O. Cheptou 2013 Inferring contemporary dispersal processes in plant metapopulations: comparison of direct and indirect estimates of dispersal for the annual species Crepis sancta. 111, 1-7 Heredity
Dornier, A., Pons, V. & P.-O. Cheptou 2011 Colonization and extinction dynamics of an annual plant metapopulation in an urban environment Oikos Vol: 120 (8) pp1240-1246
Freckleton RP, Watkinson AR (2002) Large-scale spatial dynamics of plants: metapopulations, regional ensembles and patchy populations. Journal of Ecology 90: 419-434.
Fréville H, Choquet R, Pradel R, Cheptou P.-O (2013) Inferring seed bank from hidden Markov models: new insights into metapopulation dynamics in plants. Journal of Ecology 101, 1572-1580.
Gotelli, N. J. 1991. Metapopulation models – the rescue effect, the propagule rain, and the core-satellite hypothesis. – Am. Nat. 138: 768–776.
Hanski, I. & Gaggiotti, O. (Eds.) 2004. Ecology, genetics, and evolution of metapopulations. Edited by Hanski, I. & Gaggiotti, O. Elsevier Academic Press, Amsterdam, 696 pp.
Hanski, I. & Gilpin, M.E. 1997. Metapopulation Biology: Ecology, Genetics, and Evolution. Academic Press, San Diego, 512 p.
Levins, R. (1969). "Some demographic and genetic consequences of environment heterogeneity for biological control." Bull. Entomol. Soc. Am. 15: 237–240.
Mackenzie, D. I., et al. 2009. Modeling species occurrence dynamics with multiple states and imperfect detection. Ecology 90:823-835.
Pradel, R. (2005). "Multievent: An extension of multistate capture-recapture models to uncertain states." Biometrics 61: 442-447.