PhD Studentship SE Asian freshwater fish populations and networks: the impacts of climatic and environmental change on a vital resource

To celebrate the University’s research successes, the University of Hull is offering 13 full-time UK/EU PhD Scholarship or International Fee Bursaries for candidates applying for the areas within the Faculty Science and Engineering, including the areas listed below.

Closing date: – 3^rd February 2014.
Studentships will start on 29^th September 2014

Supervisors: Prof Daniel Parsons d.parsons@hull.ac.uk (Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences); Prof. Ian Cowx (Biological Sciences), Dr. Darren Evans (Biological Sciences), and Steve Darby (Geography, University of Southampton).

The Tonle Sap Lake within the Mekong River Basin is SE Asia’s largest freshwater lake with a fishery that provides the main source of protein for >3M people. The Tonlé Lake system is unusual as during the monsoon high-waters on the Mekong River, the Tonlé Sap Lake is fed water and nutrients by reverse flows from the flooding Mekong. At low flow, the Tonlé slowly drains back into the Mekong system. This ecosystem is under severe threat to changes in the basins hydrology produced by dam building in the upper reaches and variations in the monsoon produced by climate change. This monsoon driven pulse of water and nutrients into the Tonle Sap Lake is known to be a key driver in the sustainability of the ecosystem and the fish stocks it provides and governs the structure and dynamics of these ecological networks. This studentship project will quantify and model sediment and nutrient fluxes and fish populations in the Tonle Sap through the monsoon flood pulse and use this information to build a species ecological network for the system. Results from future scenario modelling of the hydrology in response to climate and environmental (e.g. dam building) change will then be used to constrain and predict changes to the fluxes and likely vectors of the species ecological network in response to change. This will provide vital information on the resilience of fish stocks for a range of future scenarios, with wide reaching impact.

To apply for this post please click on the ‘Apply’ button below.

In order to qualify for this scholarship you will require a 2.1 in a relevant subject.

Full-time UK/EU PhD Scholarship will include fees at the ‘home/EU’ student rate and maintenance (£13,726 in 2013/14) for three years, depending on satisfactory progress.

Full-time International Fee PhD Studentships will include full fees at the International student rate for three years, dependant on satisfactory progress.

PhD students at the University of Hull follow modules for research and transferable skills development and gain a Masters level Certificate, or Diploma, in Research Training, in addition to their research degree.