SCHOOL OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, UNIVERSITY OF WALES,
BANGOR
I expect to be able to offer a Research Council PhD studentship on the
topic of "Population systematics, molecular phylogeography and venom
evolution of the western rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis)", starting in October
1997.
The aims of this project are:
(i) To elucidate the population phylogeny of Crotalus viridis by means of
mtDNA sequence analysis.
(ii) To study patterns of morphological variation by means of multivariate
morphometrics.
(iii) To investigate patterns of geographic variation in venom composition
in this species
(iv) To test historical and ecological causal hypotheses of geographic
variation in morphology and venom composition.
(v) To carry out a taxonomic revision of the complex.
The relative importance of the different components will depend in large
part on the student's interests. The student will gain experience in modern
DNA sequencing techniques, venom electrophoresis, numerical hypothesis-
testing algorithms and phylogenetic analysis, and will travel to the USA to
collect samples and to examine museum collections.
Eligibility for a Research Council Studentship depends on the applicant
and/or his/her parents having been resident and paying taxes in the UK for
the last 3 years.
If interested, please contact:
Dr. Wolfgang Wuster
School of Biological Sciences
University of Wales
Bangor
Gwynedd LL57 2UW
Wales, UK
Tel: +44 1248 383735
Fax: +44 1248 371644
E-mail: w.wuster at bangor.ac.uk
Institution home page: http://www.bangor.ac.uk/
Department home page: http://oracle.bangor.ac.uk/sbs/
