Dear collegues, this email is
to share with you the opportunity of a post-doc position on
the effects of pinger on behavior of captive dolphins
The post-Doc research program aims at integrating ongoing
projects on the effects of acoustic devices on marine fauna.
In particular, the proposed activities are implementing the
LIFE Project “Dolphin Experience: Lowering Fishing
Interactions” (LFI).
LFI aims at investigating
animal behaviors associated to the use of acoustic deterrent
devices (pingers) to keep animals away from fishing areas and
reduce the unwanted bycatch of cetaceans drown incidentally in
fishing nets. The LIF project is evaluating the effects of a
new generation of pingers (Dolphin Interactive Deterrent; DID)
that are activated only if dolphins are present, thus reducing
acoustic noise pollution and habituation to the acoustic
signal in the target species. A behavioral study will
integrate already planned in field evaluation with
experimental evaluation conducted on under human care
dolphins. More specifically, the study will determine whether
new available DID has any effect on the behavior of bottlenose
dolphins under controlled conditions and the variability of
possible effects when background motivation is manipulated.
The project is coordinated by
experts in marine fauna and the complete results of the
present research are planned to be achieved in two years. The
activities of the first year are focused on the design and
validation of the methods to be applied on the dolphin under
human care during the second year. Methods will be implemented
at the Laboratory of Applied Ethology (Dept. of Comparative
Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padua) and based
on evaluation of animal's behavior during and after the
exposure to acoustic devices.
For this study the candidate must be acquainted with basic procedures employed in ethological research (behavioral data collection, video/audio equipment) and have an inclination for activities aimed at training animals for the experimental procedures (i.e. associative learning and habituation). The candidate must also be familiar with the most widely used video-analysis software, sound analysis procedure and statistical analysis software. A proficient use of the English language (both in speaking and writing) is compulsory. Moreover, the candidate must possess good relational skills and good predisposition for teamwork. International experiences are desirable.
For any information you can contact directly the following address
Best regards
-- Prof. Sandro Mazzariol, DVM, PhD Dipartimento di Biomedicina Comparata e Alimentazione (BCA) - Università degli Studi di Padova Cetaceans strandings Emergency Response Team (CERT) Centro Interuniversitario per la Ricerca sui CEtacei (CIRCE) AGRIPOLIS - Ed. Museo Viale dell'Università 16 35020 - Legnaro (PD) tel.: +39 049 827 2963 fax: +39 049 827 2973 skype: smazzariol