Background:
Being able to estimate how closely related two individuals are and whether they are inbred is important in several different fields ranging from behavioural, conservation and medical genetics. In the context of studies of social structure, understanding patterns of kinship within and among groups can require reconstructing complex pedigrees consisting of large numbers of individuals. The killer whale (Orcinus orca) is a species with philopatric, kin-based societies, which facilitate the social learning of foraging ecology. Killer whales in Norwegian waters represent a complex ecological and social landscape, consisting of groups with diets of herring, or mixed herring and seals. See https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rspb.2024.0524.) for more details. Using whole genome sequences, this Masters project will expand upon recent work (Jourdain et al. 2024) to reconstruct expanded pedigrees to first cousins, to better understand kinship among ecologically diverse communities within the complete social network.
We are seeking:
A motivated MSc student with an interest in kinship dynamics, ecology and animal behaviour. You will join a long-term research project on Norwegian killer whales led by Dr Eve Jourdain of UiO/Norwegian Orca Survey (https://www.norwegianorcasurvey.no), with lab work and genome analyses supervised by Dr Andrew Foote of CEES at IBV, UiO.
What you will learn:
You will learn how to answer evolutionary and socio-ecological driven questions using modern techniques and molecular approaches. You will gain experience in behavioural ecology, socio-ecology, bioinformatics and genomics. There will also be opportunities for fieldwork and gaining experience in studying the whales in the wild. The skills you will gain will provide an important foundation for future applications to PhD positions or to jobs in industry.
What we offer:
This is an opportunity to join an international, friendly research group (based in Andenes and Oslo) with a focus on close mentorship and skills development. We will conduct frequent lab meetings, group discussions and provide hands-on training.
Contact & questions:
- Andrew Foote (a.d.foote@ibv.uio.no)
- Eve Jourdain (e.m.jourdain@ibv.uio.no)