PhD student in 'Annual cycle energetics of migratory birds'

The Swiss Ornithological Institute is a non-profit foundation dedicated to ornithology and the protection of birds. It monitors native birds, researches their way of life and advocates for threatened species. It looks after injured and orphaned birds, provides information and advice to the public, and runs a visitor center in Sempach. The Swiss Ornithological Institute currently has over 200 employees in all parts of the country.

The project you will be working on is situated within the Bird Migration Unit, which investigates diverse aspects of bird migration using a wide range of approaches, including individual tracking, radar ornithology, and genomics. The project aims to uncover the energetic trade-offs of migratory landbirds across their full annual cycle and to compare these trade-offs among species and individuals exhibiting different migration strategies

We are looking for the following person from 1st of June 2026 or upon agreement,

PhD student (100%) in "Annual cycle energetics of migratory birds"

Your tasks

As part of this collaborative research project aided by the COST Action EUFLYNET member network (https : / / www.euflynet.eu), you will study energy expenditure of migratory birds throughout their annual cycle based on individual tracking with multi-sensor geolocators. Using multiple species comprising long- and short-distance migrants, partial migrants, and residents, the project aims to quantify the daily energy expenditure of landbirds to uncover the energetic trade-offs and bottlenecks associated with different migration strategies. Furthermore, the project aims to model past and future energy expenditure of migratory landbirds with different migrations to predict how the energy landscape and migration patterns may shift in the face of the ongoing climate change.

Your main duties include :

• Analyse readily available and new multi-sensor geolocator data to infer migration

trajectories of individual birds of multiple species.

geolocator tracking data of individual birds.

locomotion, thermoregulation, basal metabolism, and tissue synthesis.

influences on optimal bird migration strategies from an energetic perspective.

journals.

Your profile

We offer

We offer a diverse position with a lot of responsibilities in a diversified work environment. Furthermore, we offer family-friendly and flexible working times, good opportunities for further education and exemplary social benefits. The PhD position is limited to 4 years. Working place is Sempach.

Are you interested?

The Swiss Ornithological Institutes values diversity of staff. We therefore consider all qualified applications. Further information can be provided by Martins Briedis, project leader and main supervisor, Paul Dufour, co-supervisor. We are looking forward to your application (motivation letter, CV, certificates) in a single PDF document submitted over our application portal on our website by latest 20.02.2026. Other applications cannot be considered. Interviews are scheduled by invitation for 9 and 11 March 2026.