PhD in evolutionary genetics of cognition (UK)

PhD opportunity to study the evolutionary genetics of cognition at the Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, UK under the supervision of Alastair Wilson and Alex Thornton.

Full details of eligibility and application procedures are available at http://www.findaphd.com/search/ProjectDetails.aspx?PJID=67161. Deadline for applications is Dec 1 2015.

Cognitive processes are vital for carrying out the day-to-day behaviours needed for survival and reproduction. Comparative psychologists have made great progress in determining the cognitive mechanisms underpinning behaviour, showing that many species are capable of performing more sophisticated cognitive tasks than previously thought. However, it is also becoming clear that cognitive performance varies can vary a lot among individuals within populations of the same species. This variation is hugely significant as it is a prerequisite for both natural selection and genetic variation - the two ingredients for ongoing adaptive evolution. This project will take an experimental approach to determine the genetic causes and consequences of among-individual variation in cognition in guppies, Poecilia reticulata. It will do this by combining lab-based behavioural studies with quantitative genetic modelling to frame and test evolutionary hypotheses about the causes and consequences of (genetic) variation in cognition.