Oferta postdoctoral en Francia

Post-doctoral position in forest ecology
"Contribution of understory to nutrient fluxes in a Pine plantation ecosystem"

Key words: Forest Ecosystem, Understory, Root Ecology, Nutrient cycling,
Above- and Belowground litter dynamics

A two-year postdoctoral position is available at the National School of
Agronomy in Bordeaux (UMR TCEM INRA-ENITAB), France, starting at September
2008. This work, in collaboration with a team of scientists, will contribute
to the understanding of nutrient cycling in the largest managed pine forest
in Europe.

Context and Objectives: Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) has a low leaf area
index at any stage of stand rotation, so that understory species can develop
and maintain themselves even after canopy closure. Most common understory
species in the study area (Landes of Gascony), are bracken fern (Pteridium
aquilinum), common heather (Calluna vulgaris), bell heather (Erica cinerea),
purple moor-grass (Molinia caerulea) and common gorse (Ulex europeaus).
According to preliminary estimations, understory makes up on average 6.5 %
(range 1-14%) of total ecosystem aerial biomass and 28 % (range 17-39 %) of
total ecosystem root biomass. This contribution to the total ecosystem
biomass is affected by the type of moor-land (humid versus dry). Thus,
understory may represent a considerable part of forest ecosystem biomass and
be of importance for forest nutrient and carbon sequestration and fluxes.

Our objectives are: 1) Elaborate tools to estimate biomass and nutrient
content of the main understory species in the region. This first activity
will be carried out in the summer of 2008 by the staff of the hosting
laboratory. The post-doctoral student will use resulting data as a starting
point 2) Quantify nutrient fluxes through the study of litter inputs
(monitoring phenology and sampling of litterfall) from both aerial and
belowground tissues of the understory species. The post-doctoral fellow will
be in charge of this part of the work.

Specific tasks:
The postdoctoral fellow will be part of a research team and conduct original
work, contributing in specific methodologies development and sample analysis
to study nutrient fluxes from understory in the field. In addition to the
management and analysis of pre-existing data, the canditate will be
responsible for :
- the collection and analysis of leaf litterfall of each target species,
- the development and implementation of specific methodologies to follow the
annual dynamics of fine and coarse roots in different forest stands.
This will be the core task of the postdoc.
The candidate is expected to publish results in peer reviewed literature and
present research at scientific meetings.
The position can be adapted to the expertise and interests of the selected
applicant.

Competences: The candidate should have a PhD degree in applied forest
ecology or related field. Experience in root studies and associated
motivation are desirable.

Salary: This work received ENITAB/Région Aquitaine funding for two
consecutive years, with a net monthly salary of 1535 euros.

Application: Please send curriculum vitae, a description of research
accomplishments and interests, and the names and e-mail addresses of 2-3
references to:
- Etienne Saur: e-saur@enitab.fr
- Mark Bakker: Mark.Bakker@bordeaux.inra.fr
- Maya Gonzalez: m-gonzalez@enitab.fr
Applications will be accepted until May 31, 2008
For further information please consult the following web-site:
http://www.bordeaux.inra.fr/tcem/index.htm