Phd position - Evaluation of restoration measures for fish in the River Meuse

The Aquaculture and Fisheries group at Wageningen University is looking for an enthusiastic candidate who is interested to advance science by evaluating river restoration measures in the River Meuse (the Netherlands), with the aim to establish the role of habitat quality and connectivity for more resilient and robust freshwater fish populations.

Fish are an essential element in the ecological functioning of aquatic ecosystems and have species-specific habitat requirements to fulfil their life cycle. For this reason, fish is one of the biological quality elements of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) to assess the ecological status of rivers, lakes and estuaries. However, wide-scale habitat changes, caused by intensive human use of freshwaters, have diminished the ecological quality of water bodies.

Large rivers have been particularly affected by this. These rivers serve many purposes, such as inland water transport, requiring minimum depths and stable water levels, and have been modified accordingly, e.g. by the building of weirs, protecting banks and cutting of meanders. Protection against flooding of rivers, e.g. through the construction of dykes, led to a further reduction in the natural dynamics, and hence to decreased ecological quality. This led to specialised river fishes becoming rare or even locally extinct.

To improve the ecological quality of the Meuse River Rijkswaterstaat (the executive agency of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management) has realised and planned a large number of diverse river restoration projects. These projects serve to explore which type and extent of measures are most effective in improving ecological quality within the context of the Water Framework directive (WFD), and how such measures could be optimised.

Within this project the focus will be on the fish community, especially on species that prefer flowing waters (rheophilic species). One aim is to identify bottlenecks in the life cycle of these species, which requires monitoring of the occurrence of fishes in relation to habitat characteristics. Where possible a BACI (before-after-impact-control) approach will be applied.

Within this project, you will work as a PhD student on developing new knowledge on the interactions between connectivity, quality and quantity of habitats for rheophilic fishes using proven and newly developed techniques, such as fyke monitoring, acoustic telemetry and mapping habitat conditions.

Your duties and responsibilities include:

• perform fish monitoring and telemetry in collaboration with students, perform habitat assessments, and rigorously collect, store and process data;
• analysing this data critically, using advanced statistical techniques and with deep knowledge of the biological context.;
• collaborate with relevant stakeholders (in particular Rijkswaterstaat and regional water boards) to ensure relevance, enhance learning and enlarge data collection;
• lead a team of students/collaborators in the field.

You will work here
Research training and education at PhD level at Aquaculture and Fisheries group is integrated in the research program of the Graduate School ‘Wageningen Institute of Animal Sciences’ (WIAS), which aims to contribute to the sustainability of human-animal interactions through fundamental and strategic research. The aquaculture experts within AFI focus on fish nutrition and health in aquaculture production systems, while the fisheries and ecology experts study the ecology, biodiversity, and conservation of freshwater fishes, and population ecology and fisheries of marine fish species.

Requirements:

You have:

• excellent organizational skills, enabling coordination among scientists from different disciplines;
• strong communication and networking skills to facilitate collaboration with scientists from various disciplines as well as with stakeholders;
• interdisciplinary training or experience across social and natural sciences,which is an advantage;
• strong scientific writing skills (evident from your thesis and/or publications).

You also possess:

• a masters degree in the field of biology, fisheries, aquatic ecology , physical geography, environmental science, water management or equivalent;
• a background in quantitative methods and statistical analysis; programming skills (Python, R, Matlab, or any related language), previous experience with large data analysis and/or GIS are an advantage;
• excellent command of written and spoken English;
• ability to speak Dutch which will be an advantage, also a willingness to learn Dutch is essential for effective collaboration with stakeholders;
• the qualifications to meet all the entry requirements of the WUR PhD programme.

In our international working environment there is an increasing amount of communication in English. For this position it is about language level C2. If you do not yet have this level, we will of course help you and you can go to our language center Wageningen in'to Language.

You can see that there are plenty of challenges ahead of you. These challenges can also be seen as development opportunities. So if you do not yet have the track-record required in the vacancy, but do have solid work experience, we would also like to invite you to apply.

Salary Benefits:

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed December bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between €2.770,- and €3.539,- for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale P). We offer you a challenging job for a period of 4 years at an international leading organization. Initially, we offer you a 1.5 year contract, which will, after a successful evaluation then be extended with another 2.5 years. The starting date is expected to be October 2024.

Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a unique position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.

You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland, and at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University” in the Netherlands for the 19th consecutive time.

Coming from abroad
Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

Our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example helping your partner to find a job, housing, or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.

38 hours per week

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