PhD opportunity: Climate change and alternative mating tactics in Soay sheep APPLY BY 20/01/2026 See also: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/climate-change-and-alternative-mating-tactics-in-soay-sheep/?p192085 This project offers a rare opportunity to use unique long-term data to explore how climate change is reshaping competition, behaviour, and reproduction in a wild mammal. Soay sheep males on St Kilda engage in intense fights as they compete for access to females. Yet about 10% of males lack functional horns to fight with and so cannot win. Instead, they adopt alternative tactics that can be highly successful - sneaking or disrupting guarded females to gain reproductive opportunities. Climate change is altering the timing and distribution of receptive females, and early analyses suggest that males may face shifting dynamics in the intensity and form of reproductive competition. It may also influence parasite pressures and energetic trade-offs during the rut, further affecting which tactics succeed. This PhD will investigate how climate-driven environmental and parasitic changes influence mating behaviour, hormones, and reproductive success in Soay sheep. The project will draw on nearly a decade of detailed behavioural observations from over 150 males, combined with 40 years of genetic, parasite, and environmental data. Fieldwork on St Kilda during the rut will provide opportunities to collect new behavioural, physiological, and parasite data. The project will be supervised by Dr. Brian T. Preston (LJMU), Prof. Dan Nussey (University of Edinburgh), and Susanne Zajitschek (LJMU). Applicants should hold relevant BSc and MSc degrees and be comfortable with both fieldwork in challenging conditions and advanced quantitative analyses. We welcome motivated candidates with enthusiasm for behavioural ecology, evolution, and environmental change. The Faculty of Health, Innovation, Technology and Science (HITS) and its Schools have dedicated Diversity and Inclusion (DI) Groups. The individual School Diversity & Inclusion Coordinators and the Faculty Associate Dean for Diversity & Inclusion lead collective action to promote and embed a culture of equality, diversity and inclusivity. Some Schools are awarded the Athena SWAN Bronze or Silver in recognition of their respective equality initiatives and action plans. Also, Schools have proactive diversity and inclusion groups that are aimed to support staff and students by addressing the inclusivity requirements that are unique to each School, in alignment with the LJMU Diversity & Inclusion policies. Applicants are invited to visit the Faculty of HITS website https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/about-us/faculties and follow the link to each School. Funding Notes The successful student will be entered for the LJMU VC PhD Studentship competition. These awards cover three full years of funding including UKRI-standard student stipend and research support. The competition is open to UK home students and international students, and applications from candidates from under-represented ethnic minority backgrounds are encouraged. References For an informal discussion about this opportunity please email Brian Preston b.t.preston@ljmu.ac.uk for more information. Applicants should email a CV, covering letter detailing their suitability for the project and contact details of two referees to Brian Preston, b.t.preston@ljmu.ac.uk We are committed to making scientific research more inclusive and are keen to support applicants from groups that have long been underrepresented and/or marginalised from the field. If you belong to such groups, we would like to offer dedicated pre-application advice and mentorship, so that you can prepare the strongest possible application. Please contact b.t.preston@ljmu.ac.uk by 20/1/26 for this opportunity. [Liverpool John Moores University] Susanne Zajitschek (FHEA Fellow) School of Biological and Environmental Sciences James Parsons Building Byrom Street, Liverpool, L3 3AF t: 01519041061 e: S.R.Zajitschek@ljmu.ac.uk w: https://suszaj.github.io/ZajitschekLab/ Important Notice: Liverpool John Moores University was established as a Higher Education Corporation under section 121 of the Education Reform Act 1988. Further information about Liverpool John Moores University can be found at https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/about-us The information in this email and any attachments is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s). If you are not an intended recipient, or a person responsible for delivering it to an intended recipient, you should delete it from your system immediately without disclosing its contents elsewhere and advise the sender by returning the email or by telephoning a number contained in the body of the email. No responsibility is accepted for loss or damage arising from viruses or changes made to this message after it was sent and the recipient must ensure that the email (and attachments) are virus free. The views contained in this email are those of the author and not necessarily those of Liverpool John Moores University. We will use the personal data information provided by you to respond to your email. For information about how we process personal data and monitor communications please see our Privacy Notice. https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/legal/privacy-and-cookies "Zajitschek, Susanne" (to subscribe/unsubscribe the EvolDir send mail to golding@mcmaster.ca)