Oferta de trabajo como guía de naturaleza y biología aplicada en esta reserva de Panamá

 Importante: Esta oferta sólo es accesible para panameños o residentes legales en Panamá

Boquete Bees and Butterflies is dedicated to the conservation and education of our local bee and butterfly populations. We offer unique tours that explore the fascinating world of Native Stingless Bees, highlight the importance of Africanized Bees, and showcase Butterflies, along with the diverse flora and fauna of our farm. Our mission is to spread awareness about the significance of these species while providing an engaging and informative experience for our visitors.

Job Description:

We are urgently seeking a passionate knowledgeable, nature-loving individual to join our team as a Tour Guide & Applied Biologist. This is a multifaceted role that combines hands-on biological work with educational and customer service responsibilities.

Key Responsibilities:

- Tour Development and Guiding:

- Lead and continuously improve our educational tours year-round.

- Explain the biology, ecology, and importance of bees, butterflies, and our farm's flora and fauna.

- Update and upgrade tour materials to ensure accuracy and engagement.

- Biological Maintenance:

- Care for native bees, maintain trails, manage hives, and oversee other biological aspects of the farm.

- Perform outdoor tasks, even in challenging weather conditions.

- Customer Interaction and Sales:

- Attend to customers in our Honey Shop, explaining and selling various types of honey.

- Handle sales transactions for honey and tours.

- Administrative Tasks:

- Utilize IT and media skills to enhance our online presence and attract visitors.

- Process and reserve tours efficiently.

- Develop and manage advertising materials for tours.

Qualifications:

- Strong background or interest in biology, ecology, wildlife, or related fields.

- Practical experience in outdoor, hands-on biological work.

- Ability to work in various weather conditions and perform physical tasks.

- Fluency in both English and Spanish.

- IT and media skills are highly desirable for advertising and updating tour materials.

- Excellent communication and customer service skills.

- Commitment to working weekends and holidays.

- Ability to work independently and as part of a team.

What We Offer:

- An opportunity to work in a unique and beautiful environment.

- Training on the biology and ecology of our bees and butterflies.

- A dynamic role that combines science, education, and customer service.

- A chance to make a meaningful impact on conservation and public awareness.

How to Apply:

If you are passionate about nature and eager to share your knowledge with others, we would love to hear from you. Please send your resume and a cover letter detailing your relevant experience and why you are interested in this position to samantha@natureboquete.com

Join us at Boquete Bees and Butterflies and be a part of our mission to educate and inspire others about the wonders of nature!

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Oferta para hacer el master o el doctorado en evolución de mariposas en Florida

Graduate Student Assistantships in Lepidoptera Research

McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of
Natural History University of Florida

The McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity (MGCL) at the
Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH), University of Florida (UF),
is currently accepting applications from prospective students interested
in earning a Master’s or Ph.D. degree from the Department of Biology,
Entomology and Nematology Department, or other appropriate UF department,
with a research emphasis on butterflies and moths. The MGCL will
provide a Graduate Research Assistantship (stipend + tuition waiver)
to the successful candidate for a period of two years, contingent on
continuing successful progress towards their degree, starting in Fall
2024. Priority will be given to students seeking a Master’s degree.

Potential fields of Lepidoptera research include conservation, ecology,
evolution, genomics, physiology, and systematics, among others.

For application details see:
https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/mcguire/research/assistantship-fall2024/

Please send these materials as a single PDF file to Dr. Keith Willmott
(willmott@flmnh.ufl.edu), with the subject line “Application for
McGuire Assistantship”. The deadline for applications is 11:59 pm EST,
December 15th, 2023. Please send any questions to kwillmott@flmnh.ufl.edu


Akito Y. Kawahara
Director, Curator, and Professor
McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity
Florida Museum of Natural History
University of Florida
Powell Hall, 3215 Hull Road
Gainesville, FL 32611-2710 USA
Tel: 352.273.2018
Fax: 352.392.0479
Email: kawahara@flmnh.ufl.edu
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/mcguire/kawahara/

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Haz el doctorado investigando la evolución de especies animales en zonas urbanas

Oferta compartida por Cristina

Se busca candidato/a predoctoral

¡Desde los proyectos uBMS y CBMS buscamos una persona interesada en hacer el doctorado con nosotros! La propuesta de tesis se centra en la eco-evolución de las especies animales en las zonas urbanas. Usando como modelo, por supuesto, nuestras mariposas. A continuación el resumen de la propuesta (en inglés):

“Butterflies in the city: eco-evolutionary dynamics of successful urban dwellers”
Supervisors: Yolanda Melero (Universitat de Barcelona, CREAF); Constantí Stefanescu (Museu de Granollers)
Location: Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona.)

Urban areas pose novel ecosystems to which many species are not pre-adapted. Recent studies have shown that cities contain fewer species than the (semi)natural areas surrounding them, but some of these urban species can become super abundant. Whether a species can survive and thrive in the urban ecosystems depends on their ability to (pre)adapt to such a new hostile environment, leading to healthy populations dynamics. With this work, we aim to better understand the eco-evolutionary dynamics of successful urban species by linking species traits (e.g. dispersal ability), phenotypic and genetic changes (e.g. bigger body size) and population dynamics of species with different success rates (in terms of presence and abundance) in urban environments. To do so we will use a set of seven butterfly species known to be found in the cities.

We will make use of the data collected by two butterfly monitor schemes, one in the city of Barcelona (ubms.creaf.cat, running since 2018) and another in the natural areas outside the city (www.catalanbms.org, since 1994); and data on the urban environmental variables gathered via field work and data extraction (already being collected by a technician as part of the ongoing research project MEDYCI). This project offers the opportunity of learning about (urban) ecology and evolution in ongoing research projects, butterflies biology, state of art statistical and molecular tools, among other skills. With it, we will contribute to the scientific knowledge on species responses to human-induced rapid environmental, a key question in current ecology; and we will target at-risk species and traits due to urbanization. Results will also feed and be used by administrative bodies working on greening the cities (e.g. Adjustment de Barcelona).

Candidate requirements: BSc. in Biology or related with a grade > 8; good level of English and learning capacity. Master in Ecology or similar and knowledge of R will be positively considered. We expect the candidate to apply for a FPU (see 2021 call), a FI grant and/or a UB-Predoc grant; hence requirements and prioritization will be based on these calls. Please send a letter of motivation and a CV, including the final grade of your academic record (BSc and MSc), to Yolanda Melero (ymelero@ub.edu) before end of October.

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Trabaja como asistente de investigación en mariposas tropicales (¡con estancia en Ecuador incluída!)

Oferta compartida por Nuria

We are looking for a motivated student research assistant to join our project studying neuroanatomy, behaviour and speciation in tropical Heliconius butterflies. The RA will join Richard Merrill’s research group at LMU Munich (https://www.evol.bio.lmu.de/research/index.html), and will work closely with our collaborators at the Universidad Regional Amazónica Ikiam (Ecuador), the Universidad del Rosario (Colombia), and the University of Bristol (UK).

The position is for 2.5 years, following successful assessments at ~4 and ~10 months. The applicant will be primarily based at LMU in Munich, after a period of 3 to 6 months working in our insectaries in Ecuador, and a possible shorter visit to Bristol. As such, applicants must be prepared to spend considerable time in the tropics, be self-motivated and work well as part of a team. In addition to butterfly breeding and behavioural experiments in the tropics, the work would mostly involve antibody staining, confocal imaging and segmentation of brains. Experience with these techniques would be welcome, but is not required. More important is self motivation, an interest in the evolution of brains and behaviour, good communication and English skills, and the ability to problem solve.

The position would suit someone interested in the evolution of brains and behaviour, with a relevent MSc or bachelors degree, who is considering pursuing a PhD. The successful applicant will work closely with Postdocs in the lab and will contribute to ongoing experiments, but there is scope for independent projects. Depending on available funding, and the right candidate, the position could be extended to allow a PhD project in the future.

LMU is recognized among Europe’s premier academic and research institutions, being consistently ranked among the top Universities worldwide. Within the Division of Evolutionary Biology (http://www.evol.bio.lmu.de), the researcher will be part of vibrant international communities of scientists. In addition, the researcher will join a collaborative and driven community of Heliconius biologists. The working language of the lab and the Division of Evolutionary Biology is English.

The position is funded by an ERC starting grant (The genetic and neural basis of reproductive isolation) awarded to Richard Merrill. The expected salary will be equivalent to that paid at the level of a PhD student (mostly likely EV13 65%, approx. 1750 € after tax and contributions). The successful applicant could start at the earliest from September/October 2022, but this start date could be extended for the right candidate (and might depend on obtaining visas). The position is open to EU and international applicants, assuming they can obtain the necessary work documents.

Further information about the lab can be found https://www.evol.bio.lmu.de/research/merrill/index.html and links within. For relevant publications see below. Informal questions should be directed to Richard Merrill (merrill@bio.lmu.de), Shane Wright (dswright@biologie.uni-muenchen.de) or Lucie Queste (queste@biologie.uni-muenchen.de).

Applications, made up of a *single pdf* including: 

i) A short letter of motivation, 

ii) A current CV (including grades) and 

iii) the names and contact details of two referees, should be sent to Richard Merrill (merrill@bio.lmu.de) with the subject header “HELICONIUS RA” by 31st July 2022. Interviews will be held most likely over zoom in the following 2 weeks.

Relevant publications:
Montgomery, S.H., Rossi, M., McMillan, O. & Merrill, R.M. (2021) Neural divergence and hybrid disruption between ecologically isolated Heliconius butterflies. PNAS 116: e2015102118 LINK <https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2015102118>

Rossi, M., Hausmann, A.E., Thurman, T., Montgomery, S.H., Papa, R., Jiggins, R.D., McMillan, O. & Merrill, R.M.(2020) Visual mate preference evolution during butterfly speciation is linked to neural processing genes. Nature Communications 11: 4763. LINK <https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-18609-z>

Montgomery, S.H. & Merrill, R.M. (2017) Divergence in brain composition during the early stages of ecological specialisation in Heliconius butterflies. J Evol Biol 30: 571-582 LINK <https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jeb.13027>

Merrill, R.M., Dasmahapatra, K., Davey, J., Dell’Aglio, D., Hanly J.J, Huber B., Jiggins C.D., Joron, M., Kozak K., Llaurens V., Martin S.H., Montgomery S.H., Morris, J., Nadeau N.J., Pinharanda A.L., Rosser N., Thompson M.J., Vanjari, S., Wallbank R.W., Yu, Q. (2015) The diversification of Heliconius butterflies. What
have we learned in 150 years? J Evol Biol 28: 1417-38 LINK <https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jeb.12672>

For more relevant publications from the lab (and before) please see https://richmerrill.wordpress.com/about/.

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Huye del frío y vete 3 meses a Panamá a estudiar comportamiento de mariposas

The Evolution of Brains and Behaviour (EBAB) Lab
(http://shmontgomery.co.uk/index.html) at the University of Bristol, UK
is seeking a field assistant to help with developmental and behavioural
studies of Heliconius butterflies at the Smithsonian Tropical Research
Institute (STRI) in Gamboa, Panama. The successful candidate will spend
approximately three months in Panama, beginning in mid-January 2020. The
position is open to all students with a background in zoology and interest
in animal behaviour or neurobiology.

Heliconius butterflies exhibit a marked expansion of the mushroom body,
a region of the insect brain associated with learning and memory, being
3-4 times larger than in other Lepidoptera, including closely related
Heliconiini genera. The EBAB Lab is investigating both the developmental
basis and behavioural consequences of this expansion through developmental
timeseries of neural tissue and behavioural experimentation across both
Heliconius and non-Heliconius Heliconiini species.

The primary responsibilities of the field assistant will be to maintain
stock butterfly populations and rear caterpillars. There will also be
opportunities to collect wild butterflies from surrounding forests, assist
with behavioural experiments on long-term memory and learn to perform
insect brain dissections and lab protocols for next-generation sequencing
approaches. This is an excellent opportunity for a recent graduate to
gain experience in lab work, experimental design and field collecting.

Dates: starting and finishing dates are flexible, but ideally the
successful candidate will be available for three months, beginning in
mid-January 2020.

Funding: the successful applicant will receive 800 USD per month, which
comfortably covers living costs while in Panama. STRI requires that
all researchers have health insurance, this is not provided but can be
purchased through STRI at the applicant¢s cost. Financial assistance
with air travel to and from Panama will be available if required.

Accommodation: application can be made for accommodation through STRI
or arranged privately. Accommodation costs are approximately 250-300 USD
per month. Gamboa is a small town, with all facilities within comfortable
walking distance.

Interested applicants should have training in zoology or a related
field, and should send a CV and brief statement of research interests
to Fletcher Young (fletcherjyoung@gmail.com) and Laura Hebberecht
(laurahebberecht@gmail.com). Applicants will be interviewed via Skype
in mid-November 2019.

Applications will close 10 November 2019.

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Voluntariado con mariposas en la Amazonía peruana

The Alliance for a Sustainable Amazon (ASA), a research-focused non-profit organization working in the southeastern Peruvian Amazon, is pleased to announce the position of Field Research Assistant in Lepidoptera beginning in June, 2019. The successful applicant will be based at the ASA’s field site in Peru’s Madre de Dios Department.

POSITION: Lepidoptera Research Assistant

LOCATION: Finca Las Piedras, Madre de Dios, Peru

POSITION DURATION: 6 months (June 17 – December 13, 2019)

SCHEDULE: 5 days/week, flexibility in scheduling required

START DATE: June 17, 2019

APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 30, 2019

JOB DESCRIPTION

Lepidoptera Research Assistants (LRAs) work closely with ASA faculty and staff to facilitate ongoing biological research and monitoring projects at Finca Las Piedras, the ASA’s field site and base of operations in Peru’s Madre de Dios Department. LRAs are part of the public face of the ASA’s programs in Peru, and are part of a dynamic team of researchers, conservation and development professionals, and students from around the world. In addition to assigned tasks, LRAs are encouraged to develop individual projects within their areas of interest and that overlap with the ASA’s priority research areas.

This is a residency position, meaning that the successful applicant will live on site, full time. LRAs receive the equivalent of two days off per week, although given the nature of field research and ongoing projects at the field site, time off will be scheduled to ensure that a staff member is always available on site daily to perform essential tasks.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The LRA will contribute primarily to several ongoing, long term projects focused on Lepidoptera diversity and biology at the field site. Current projects include a survey of the butterfly and moth fauna of Finca Las Piedras and adjacent areas, as well as a rearing study that aims to document the host plants for several focal groups of Lepidoptera.

Example tasks & duties

-Daily care of rearing study, including recording data for immature Lepidoptera, finding & changing host plants, vouchering specimens, etc.

-Searching for new host plant records along trails and in forest plots

-General maintenance and upkeep of butterfly rearing facility & flight cage

-General maintenance and upkeep of host plant shade house

-Survey (i.e., collecting) of the Lepidoptera of the field site & adjacent areas

-Data collection & management

REQUIREMENTS
6 month commitment required (17 June – 13 December, 2019)
Minimum bachelor’s degree in natural or environmental sciences or related field
Knowledge of and experience in entomology and/or field Lepidoptera research
At least basic Spanish (preferred)
Experience working/living abroad, especially in the tropics (preferred)
Enthusiasm and strong work ethic
Flexibility in schedule and work environment
Maturity/must live with and work well with others in close setting
Excellent physical condition
Traveler’s insurance (proof required upon acceptance)
CPR/first aid certification (proof required upon acceptance)

TRAINING

Upon arrival at Finca Las Piedras, LRAs undergo an intensive, one-week training period. Research Assistants are given an overview of current Lepidoptera-related projects, as well as the methodologies used. LRAs will also be trained informally throughout the duration of their term at Finca Las Piedras.

COMPENSATION

This is an unpaid position. However, all room and board is provided on-site at Finca Las Piedras, 7 days per week, for the duration of the appointment. Work-related local transportation, including pickup from the Puerto Maldonado airport (PEM) or bus terminal, is covered. LRAs are responsible for their international flight to Peru (if applicable), including airfare, taxes, airport fees, flight insurance, etc., and domestic air or land travel to Puerto Maldonado.

HOW TO APPLY

The following are required to apply for this position:
A cover letter of interest
Current CV/resume with contact information for two references
Most recent unofficial university transcript

Completed applications should include each of the three required items, and should be submitted as a single PDF document, in the order listed above, by the application deadline (April 30, 2019). Document title should read: “last name”_“LRA application”.pdf

Send completed applications to: info@sustainableamazon.org with “Lepidoptera Assistant application” in the subject line.

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