Post-doc position: North Sea Zooplankton Dynamics (2 year)

We are looking for an enthusiastic post-doc (2 years) within the MONS project to study the transfer of zooplankton to higher trophic levels, including fish and gelatinous taxa, in a changing North Sea.

THE INSTITUTE

NWO-NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research is the Dutch national oceanographic institute and principally performs academically excellent multidisciplinary, fundamental, and frontier applied marine research addressing important scientific and societal questions pertinent to the functioning of the ocean and seas. NIOZ includes the National Marine research Facilities (NMF) department that operates a fleet of research vessels and the national pool of large seagoing equipment, and supports excellence in multidisciplinary marine research, education, and policy development.

THE DEPARTMENT

The department of Estuarine and Delta Systems (EDS, NIOZ-Yerseke) aims at understanding how the interplay between organisms, hydrodynamics, sediment dynamics and chemistry shapes the estuarine and delta environment in the context of natural and human-induced environmental changes. An important focus of our research is how these abiotic-biotic interactions create value for society, following for example the “Building with Nature” paradigm or investigating sustainable sources of marine biomass for food. We do Frontier Applied science, meaning that we link fundamental understanding to societal usage. In doing so, we aim to actively support managers with insight needed for ecosystem conservation, ecosystem restoration, and enhancing ecosystem services (e.g., creating nature-based flood defence, alternative sources of food, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, etc.) all in the face of global change and accelerating sea level rise.

THE PROJECT

Several large-scale changes are ongoing in the North Sea. We see major transitions related to energy supply (i.e. the construction of offshore wind farms), food provisioning (fisheries and aquaculture), and nature conservation, superimposed on pressures resulting from climate change. The national North Sea Agreement has recognised the need for an integrated and systematic monitoring and research program on the functioning of the North Sea in these times of change. The resulting MONS program (Monitoring en Onderzoek Natuurversterking en Soortenbescherming, https://www.noordzeeoverleg.nl/mons-programma) will address questions on whether and how the future anthropogenic use of the North Sea fits within the ecological carrying capacity of the system. MONS will clarify and/or predict the extent of these changes, scientifically assess the severity of the impacts, and communicate the results to the parties involved in the North Sea consultation and the general public.

An important research line within MONS is focused on zooplankton. Zooplankton plays an important role in the marine food web as primary node of organic matter transfer from phytoplankton to higher trophic levels. This classical 'herbivorous' view on the marine food web is, however, changing. Recent studies suggest that the role of gelatinous zooplankton is likely larger than previously anticipated. Moreover, the composition of zooplankton is shifting from holoplankton (e.g. copepods) to so-called meroplankton, larvae of benthic organisms such as sea stars or crabs. The importance of meroplankton in the marine food web is however largely unknown. A zooplankton monitoring program on the North Sea has recently started, which will provide baseline monitoring data in support of several research projects.

This post-doc project will specifically focus on the predation of (gelatinous) zooplankton by fish (larvae) and jellyfish using two approaches. Firstly, a comprehensive analysis of size, biomass and isotope data of the zooplankton prey field from the monitoring program that has started in 2023, which will be combined with DNA metabarcoding data of fish and jellyfish isotope and gut contents of which the samples have already been collected during several campaigns in 2026. A second, and more open, approach will be the use of experimental mesocosms to study the transfer efficiency of various prey types to higher trophic levels, in which stable isotope enrichments can be used as trophic tracer. There is the possibility to join multiday research cruises throughout the year to the North Sea for additional sample collection.

The post-doc researcher will be based at the Department of Estuarine and Delta Systems (NIOZ-EDS, Yerseke) and will interact with two PhD students (already working on zooplankton within MONS), zooplankton experts from Wageningen Marine Research (WMR), Rijkswaterstaat and the NIOZ-Department of Coastal Systems (NIOZ-COS, Texel). We further foresee collaboration with other MONS research programs, that are focussed on amongst others on phytoplankton, primary production and fish distribution, and with fish experts from Wageningen Marine Research (WMR), Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML, UK) and Centre of Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas, UK).

THE CANDIDATES

• You should hold a PhD in the field of marine ecology and have experience with techniques and applications of studies using DNA metabarcoding. Experience with stable isotope analysis and/or running lab- or mesocosm experiments is beneficial.

• Given the interdisciplinary nature of the work, it is important that you are collaborative and communicative, to facilitate interactions with other members of the group and the project consortium.

• You have excellent writing and communication skills (in English), first-author publications in peer-reviewed journals and have presented at scientific meetings and/or conferences

• You have a demonstrated ability to work accurately, are well-organized, and can adapt to developing insights

CONDITIONS

• Employment of this full-time position at Royal NIOZ is by NWO-I for a limited period of max. 24 months (depending on seniority)

• Salary compliant with CAO-WVOI scale 10, (Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Research Institutes) depending on relevant experience.

• The freedom to fulfill your role and space and opportunities for your personal (talent) development with the help of the NIOZ Academy.

• 338 annualized holiday hours for a full-time 40-hour work week.

• Pension scheme via ABP, 8% holiday allowance and a year-end bonus of 8.33%.

• 2nd class public transportation travel is reimbursed 100%.

• Employment benefits plan to exchange a portion of your salary for days off or vice versa, or can be used to purchase a bicycle with tax benefits.

• We offer relocation expenses for employees coming from abroad and support with finding accommodation. Yerseke is located on commuting distance from major cities such as Antwerpen, Breda, Bergen op Zoom and Middelburg.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about this vacancy, please contact Dr. Dick van Oevelen. For additional information about the procedure, please send an e-mail to working@nioz.nl

Closing date for this vacancy is 15-October-2026.