About the Project
Join an experienced research team for research on an exciting project. We have existing research infrastructure for this project, and an internationally innovative research approach. With effective supervision and strong support for writing and quantitative skills, this PhD project will suit an ambitious and enthusiastic researcher who aims for excellence in applied ecology.
This PhD project will help resolve global food security problems in the fight against climate change. As well as being of applied importance, this project will also have strong relevance to testing ecological theories about diversity and stability of ecosystem function. Main activities of this PhD research will include design and maintenance of field and glasshouse experiments; data collection, analysis and interpretation, and; publication of results in international journals. There will also be opportunities for travel to visit other laboratories abroad and/or attend international conferences.
Our recent research (see References) demonstrates important yield advantages of four-species grass-legume swards compared to monocultures of either grasses or legumes that are maintained under experimental drought (Finn et al 2013). Thus, mixed swards in general, and especially mixed swards with legumes, offer an important adaptation option. Through a combination of field plots and pot trials, this research project will experimentally investigate whether and how the diversity of grassland mixtures (from one to six species) affects the relative ability of monocultures and mixtures to withstand and recover from experimental drought (see Hofer et al. 2016 for an example).
Climate change is causing more intense and frequent extreme weather events, such as drought, flooding and severe storms. Agricultural systems are already under pressure to increase production to feed the rising world population and face further stress from such extreme weather events. Research is needed to inform the choice of appropriate mitigation and/or adaptation strategies for agricultural systems to thrive under these pressures. This project addresses this challenge.
The doctoral candidate will be supervised jointly by Dr. Caroline Brophy, Maynooth University and Dr John Finn, Teagasc, Johnstown Castle, Wexford. The successful candidate will be located at Teagasc, Johnstown Castle, Wexford. A significant level of training in relevant statistical methods will be provided.
Applicants should possess a first class or upper second-class honours degree in ecology, agricultural science, plant physiology or a related subject, and a Masters degree will be a distinct advantage. Knowledge of plant ecology and a strong quantitative ability to analyse data will be essential. An ability to drive is advantageous. Applications should be sent to (Dr John Finn) by 10th June 2017 and should include a covering letter and CV, and the names and contact details of two academic referees. The start date of the position will be in October 2017. For further information about the project, please contact Dr John Finn ([Email Address Removed]).
Funding Notes
Funded by the Teagasc Walsh Fellowship programme.
The successful candidate will receive €22,000 per year for no more than four years, out of which they will be required to pay university registration fees as well as costs of living. Fees at Maynooth University for doctoral students are currently €5,500 per year for EU citizens and €13,500 for non-EU citizens, and may increase over time.
References
Examples of recent research on this topic by the supervisory team include the following:
Hofer, D., Suter, M., Haughey, E., Finn, J.A., Hoekstra, N.J., Buchmann, B. and Lüscher, A. (2016) Yield of temperate forage grassland species is either largely resistant or resilient to experimental summer drought. Journal of Applied Ecology, 53: 1023-1034.
Carnus, T., Finn, J.A., Kirwan, L. and Connolly, J. (2014). Assessing the relationship between biodiversity and stability of ecosystem function—is the coefficient of variation always the best metric? Ideas in Ecology and Evolution 7: 89-96.
Finn et al. (2013), Ecosystem function enhanced by combining four functional types of plant species in intensively managed grassland mixtures: a 3-year continental-scale field experiment. Journal of Applied Ecology, 50: 365–375.
Dooley, Á., Isbell, F., Kirwan, L., Connolly, J., Finn, J. A., Brophy, C. (2015), Testing the effects of diversity on ecosystem multifunctionality using a multivariate model. Ecology Letters 18: 1242–1251.
Hoekstra, N.J., Suter, M., Finn, J.A, Husse, S. and Lüscher, A. (2015). Do belowground vertical niche differences between deep and shallow-rooted species enhance resource uptake and drought resistance in grassland mixtures? Plant and Soil, 394: 21-34.