Do you have experience with research on insect predator-prey interactions? Are you motivated by working on sustainable solutions for pest control in arable farming? Do you have basic knowledge in population-dynamical modelling? Do you enjoy working with stakeholder and in a multidisciplinary team of ecologists, modellers, agronomists and social scientists?

The Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) is looking for a highly motivated PhD student to take part in a national research project called ‘FABforward - Functional AgroBiodiversity for Sustainable Pest Management’.

About the position

Functional agrobiodiversity (FAB) to support natural pest control in arable crops has a high potential to reduce pesticide use and to enhance biodiversity without compromising crop yields. FAB measures, such as planting specific flowery field margins and hedgerows, make crop fields more suitable for natural enemies. FABforward brings together a consortium of experts from academia, applied sciences, agriculture and governance. Collaborating in a living lab, we will fill the knowledge gaps and develop tools so that farmers can minimize the application of pesticides, and the agricultural landscape becomes more biodiverse and attractive. This includes knowledge on natural enemies of main pests and their requirements, and on the FAB measures at field, farm and landscape scale that can optimally support them. Automated methods of monitoring pest and natural enemies will be developed, as well as models that, based on weather and landscape data, can predict pest trends for better informed pest-management decisions. We improve natural capital models to quantify costs and benefits of scenarios with payments for ecosystem services to farmers. Social studies will identify barriers and opportunities in the motivation of different stakeholders, and to stimulate nature-positive behaviour, to foster the transition to a more sustainable agriculture.

What are you going to do?

Within this project you will specifically work on WP1, which aims are:

A. To perform research that is needed to develop FAB measures supporting a reliable natural pest control system in potatoes, cereal, onion and sugar beet, when grown in rotation.

B. To implement the FAB measures on farms in a range of different landscapes and evaluate the resulting effectivity of the natural pest control in all four crops, and identify practical problems related to its implementation.

This research will partly be performed at and supervised by the business unit Field Crops of Wageningen University & Research (WUR) at Lelystad.

Task and responsibilities:

Summarizing the current knowledge on (potential) natural enemies of the main pest in arable crops;
Co-designing laboratory experiments and field data collection;
Performing experiments to test the efficacy of various predators and parasitoids as natural enemies of pests, in the lab and in the field, using behavioural, population-dynamical or DNA finger-printing methods;
Collect data on pests, natural enemies and environmental conditions at arable farms;
Conducting statistical analyses;
Communicating and collaborating with researchers, farmers and other stakeholders;
Assisting in teaching undergraduates and master students;
Writing publications for peer-reviewed journals;
Writing a PhD thesis.

Your profile

Your experience and profile:

MSc in ecology, population dynamics, environmental science or a closely related field;
Good skills and experience in doing field observations and in experimenting with arthropods;
Affinity with population-dynamical research and modelling;
Interest, passion and experience in the ecological questions related to natural pest control and functional agrobiodiversity;
Ability to work in an interdisciplinary team;
Driver’s license (Cat B);
Ability to speak and communicate well in Dutch and English;
Proficiency in scientific writing.

Our offer

A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of 4 years (the initial contract will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of 4 years). This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.

The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week, increases from € 2.901,- to € 3.707,- (PhD) over the four-year period. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable.

Besides the salary and a vibrant environment within the FAB forward project, we offer you multiple fringe benefits:

a full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year (for part-timers, this is calculated pro rata);
8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus;
solid pension scheme (ABP);
contribution to commuting expenses;
optional model for designing a personalised benefits package;
a PhD education program including training for teaching assistants and courses that are part of the PE&RC graduate school;

Are you curious to read more about our extensive package of secondary employment benefits, take a look here.

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