Posatdoctoral Position in Belowground Ecology

Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Faculty of Forest Sciences Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Umeå Postdoctoral Position in Belowground Ecology SLU is an international university, world class in live and environmental sciences.We are ranked among the Top 100 of ca 5,000 European universities.We have a strong research focus, but we also offer some of Sweden s most in-demand deucations; veterinarian, forester, and landscape architect. SLU has close to 3,000 employees and some 5,000 students.Annual tornover is SEK 2.7 billion, and extivities are concentrated to the main campuses in Uppsala, Alnarp, Umeå and Skara. Duties: The project will involve studying belowground ecology and aboveground-belowground linkages in boreal forests and subarctic tundra in northern Sweden.We are especially interested in appointing a researcher who has expertise in any one of the following areas: (1) ecology of plant litter decomposition, (2) ecology of soil invertebrates (notably microarthropods and/or nematodes) and/or soil food webs, or (3) plant-soil interactions and feedbacks.However, strong candidates focusing on belowground ecology but specializing in other aspects will also be seriously considered.The scope of the project work is deliberately broad, and will be adapted to suit the specific interests of the researcher that is appointed.However, it is intended that the researcher works on study systems and questions that are actively studied by our group; examples include the belowground consequences of fire in boreal forests, the ecological role of fire-derived charcoal, aboveground and belowground changes across chronosequences, and impacts of elevation and vegetation type in subarctic tundra.A fuller description of the group?s work is given on www.seksko.se/goto.php?link=vegeco.In addition to this work, the researcher will have opportunities to perform some fieldwork exploring belowground ecology and aboveground-belowground linkages in New Zealand and/or Australia during the northern winter.Depending on the candidates that we attract, we may make two appointments for this position. Qualifications: The qualification for this position is a PhD in Biology, Ecology or Forestry, preferably completed in the previous three years. Form of employment: Temporary employment Starting date The intended start date is April 2011, although there is some flexibility around this. SLU is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome your application marked with ref no SLU ID ua 3137/2010.Please submit your application to the Registrar of SLU, P.O. The application should be written in English.