Nigel Groome Studentship: Using Museomics to Investigate the Disappearance of the Mazarine Blue and Large Copper Butterflies in the UK

3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship

Eligibility: Home UK/EU and International applicants

Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees (2025/26 bursary rate is £20,780)

Fees and Bench fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years of the funded Studentship. Visa and associated costs are not funded. International applicants can visit https://www.brookes.ac.uk/students/isat/ for further information

Closing date: Friday 25 April 2025 - Midday

Start Date: September 2025

Requirements:

Applicants should have a first or upper second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution in the UK or acceptable equivalent qualification. International applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent) with an overall minimum score of 6.5 to 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last 2 years by an approved test centre.

The studentship requires you to undertake the equivalent of up to 6 hrs teaching per week on average, during semester time, and to include preparation and marking (but no more than 20 hrs per week), and to participate in a teaching skills course without further remuneration. 

Project Title: Nigel Groome Studentship: Using museomics to investigate the disappearance of the Mazarine Blue and Large Copper butterflies in the UK

Project Description:

Climate change and habitat degradation are causing global biodiversity declines. Extinction risk is acute for insects, which are difficult to monitor but are often of direct or indirect socioeconomic importance. Museum samples are a treasure trove for understanding past extinction events and preventing future losses, but their use remains limited. This project aims to use whole genome sequence (WGS) data from museum samples of Mazarine Blue and Large Copper butterflies to conduct a genomic investigation of their demise in the UK. This will involve optimizing WGS sequencing protocols for working on museum specimens and developing best practices for museum metagenomics.

We will focus on, but not limited to, the following:

1. Evaluating the impact of historical and more recent events on the disappearance of these two species.
2. Did genetic factors like inbreeding and genetic load contribute to their extirpation?
3. Did fungal or other microbial pathogens play a role in their demise?  

This project will be in collaboration with the Natural History Museum (London), Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the University of Edinburgh and potentially other museums. We are looking for someone interested in conservation genomics, working with museum specimens and a desire to develop bioinformatics/data science skills. Lab and Bioinformatics training will be provided as part of the programme of study. There will also be opportunity to participate in LepEU activities. For more information, interested candidates are encouraged to contact Saad (sarif@brookes.ac.uk).

Essential Criteria:

• Degree in relevant study area
• Interest or background in conservation genomics
• Bioinformatics experience/aptitude, some knowledge of R or Python
• Molecular Biology experience (PCR, DNA extraction, pipetting)
• Experience working with museum samples would be a plus 

Further reading:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mec.17518

https://elifesciences.org/articles/87928

Contact hls-applications@brookes.ac.uk for details of how to apply, or queries via the above ‘Apply’ button. 

Director of Studies: Dr Saad Arif

Supervisors: Dr Korneel Hens

Project Contact: Dr Saad Arif: sarif@brookes.ac.uk

Advertised competitively alongside other current PhD studentship advertisements for School of Biological and Medical Sciences projects. Part time MPhil/PhD study will be exceptionally considered (Home applicants only).

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