ecology postdoc position wanted

[M.Spencer]

I've recently submitted my PhD thesis on "the effects of habitat size on 
food web structure" supervised by Dr P.H. Warren at the University of 
Sheffield, England, and I'm looking for a postdoc (anywhere/mostly 
English speaking) in theoretical/experimental community or population 
ecology.  CV attached.

Matt Spencer.
m.spencer at sheffield.ac.uk
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Curriculum vitae		Matthew Spencer				

Address
	Dept. Animal and Plant Sciences,	
	University of Sheffield,
	Sheffield,
	S10 2TN,
	England.

	Tel: (01142) 824827
	Fax: (01142) 760 159
	e-mail: m.spencer at sheffield.ac.uk

Date of birth	
	17 April, 1971

Research interests
	My interests lie broadly in the field of community ecology, 
both theoretical and experimental, particularly: predator-prey systems; 
island biogeography; food web structure and dynamics; community assembly; 
metapopulation dynamics and spatial processes; individual-based models; 
and the application of community ecology in conservation, management 
and biological control.  I am also interested in evolutionary ecology 
and artificial life.

Relevant skills
	I have wide experience of spatial modelling of ecological problems 
including predator-prey systems, using probabilistic cellular automata 
with both local and global rules, their approximations using Markov chains 
and statistical models, and parameterization of spatial models using 
published data.  I have developed a number of Windows programs using 
object-oriented Turbo Pascal for Windows, and I now program mainly in C 
(DOS, UNIX and X Window), as well as FORTRAN and BASIC.  I am familiar 
with SPSS for Windows, Maple, Excel, Word for Windows, Netscape, Idealist 
(free text database), Slidewrite and Cricket Graph (graph drawing 
software).  I have also worked with a number of other software packages 
including SAS, Latex, Xfig and Gnuplot.  I have used a wide variety of 
statistical methods including analysis of variance and covariance, 
regression and multiple regression, loglinear models and a range of 
nonparametric techniques.  I have some experience of field entomology, 
mainly with Drosophila and insects associated with fresh water.  I am 
familiar with the experimental techniques needed to work with laboratory 
aquatic microcosms (bacteria, algae, protozoa, microcrustacea, rotifers,  
and Hydra).  I have experience of collecting, identifying and experimenting 
with a wide range of freshwater invertebrates, and have also worked 
with lichens. I have reviewed a book chapter manuscript, and a 
manuscript for The American Naturalist.

Publications

Spencer, M.  The effects of habitat size and energy on food 
web structure: an individual-based cellular automata model.  
Ecological Modelling, submitted.

Spencer, M. and Warren, P.H.  The effects of habitat size and 
productivity on food web structure in small aquatic microcosms.  
Oikos, accepted subject to revisions.

Spencer, M. and Warren, P.H.  The effects of habitat size on food 
web structure: a microcosm experiment.  Oecologia, submitted.

Spencer, M.  Habitat size, energy and the dynamics of predator-prey 
systems.  In preparation.

Warren, P.H. and Spencer, M.  Community and food-web responses to 
the manipulation of energy input and disturbance in small ponds.  
Oikos, in press.

Book review: The essence of chaos (E.N. Lorenz).  
Journal of Biogeography 21, 666-667.

Work in progress  
I recently attended the Woods Hole Summer School: Food webs in 
terrestrial, freshwater and marine systems (June-July 1995).  I worked on 
a collaborative project on spatial models of community assembly, with 
Kim Cuddington (University of Guelph, Canada), David Hiebeler 
(Cornell University, USA), Tim Keitt (University of New Mexico, USA) and 
Louise Matthews (University of Leeds, England).  My contribution was to 
develop a spatial community assembly model for simple phytotelmata 
food webs, and use it to predict the effects of disturbance on community 
structure in tropical and temperate phytotelmata.  This collaboration is 
ongoing and will lead to publication in a symposium volume.

Education
1992-present:  University of Sheffield.  I submitted my PhD thesis on 
"The effects of habitat size on food web structure", supervised by 
Dr P.H. Warren on 1 August, and my viva will be on 24 November.  
The project involved a combination of literature data, simulation 
modelling using cellular automata, laboratory aquatic microcosm 
experiments and field experiments with freshwater organisms.

1989-1992:  University of Leeds.  BSc (Hons) Ecology, 1st class.  
Summer field project on lichen community structure (joint winner of 
Broadhead Prize); final year lab project on coexistence of Drosophila 
genotypes in a patchy environment.

1982-1989: 13 GCE "O" levels (10 at grade A); 3 GCE "A" levels at grade A.

Other interests
I enjoy rock climbing and African/Latin percussion.


Referees
	Dr P.H. Warren (PhD supervisor),
	Dept. Animal and Plant Sciences,
	University of Sheffield,
	Sheffield,
	S10 2TN,
	England.
	e-mail p.warren at sheffield.ac.uk


	Dr B. Jarvis (postgraduate affairs committee),
	Dept. Animal and Plant Sciences,
	University of Sheffield,
	Sheffield,
	S10 2TN,
	England.

	Professor John Lee (head of department),
	Dept. Animal and Plant Sciences,
	University of Sheffield,
	Sheffield,
	S10 2TN,
	England.