The Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (MPI-EVA) in Leipzig, Germany, is a world-leading research institute investigating one of the most fundamental questions in science: What makes humans human? The institute brings together scientists from a wide range of disciplines who take an interdisciplinary approach to gain new insights into the history, diversity and capabilities of the human species.
Animals have evolved social lifestyles many times and in many ways, resulting in social structures that range from temporary associations to stable, highly organized societies. The structures of animal social systems are thought to be shaped by the various evolutionary costs and benefits of living with others – for example, improved foraging efficiency or increased susceptibility to disease.
Recent research suggests another possible benefit: that social animals acquire some of their microbiome from their conspecifics. If this is true, then social partners may act as ‘reservoirs’ of beneficial microbes for individuals with newly developing or recently disrupted microbiomes. However, it is crucial to disentangle social microbiome transmission from other factors that affect the microbiome, such as diet, age, and landscape use, to evaluate this hypothesis. The Social Microbiome Group aims to understand how social living influences animal microbiomes, and in turn how microbes have shaped the costs and benefits of social evolution.
We seek a doctoral researcher to integrate behavioral and genetic data to address several unresolved questions about the social microbiome. Depending on the interests of the doctoral candidate, projects may include:
Please upload your complete application documents, including cover letter, CV and relevant references, to our application tool via our career-website:
https://www.eva.mpg.de/career/positions-available/job/615/Abteilung%20Verhalten%20und%20Evolution%20von%20Primaten/en/?cHash=43b87d74fd3c846bbd33b82316e8acb4
ID: 184626