Researcher in Palynology at the Swedish Museum of Natural History

The Swedish Museum of Natural History is a government authority with a mission from the government to promote knowledge, research, and interest in our world. The authority is a prominent research institution and Sweden's largest museum. For more than 200 years, the museum has collected objects and data and conducted research on life on Earth. The collections contain more than 11 million plants, animals, fungi, environmental samples, minerals, and fossils. All research and knowledge are shared in exhibitions, Cosmonova, and activities at the museum and digitally.

In the Department of Paleobiology (PAL), we are over 15 employees working on scientific questions regarding animal and plant fossils, evolution, and diversity, managing the collections that our investigations are based on and result in. We study which species exist in the geological record, how they are related to each other, and how they have been affected by environmental changes throughout Earth's history. We are the ones who discover and describe new species and give them their scientific names. PAL manages over 2 million objects in our collections.

This two-year research project is part of a larger project, PlantEra, funded by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation. The project focuses on dating and environmental interpretation of vegetation and marine ecosystems in Sweden's Mesozoic strata (primarily Jurassic and Cretaceous) using palynology in terrestrial and marine sediments. Furthermore, the project aims to link and compare palynological data and species identification and biozonation conducted in Western and Eastern Europe, specifically comparisons between Sweden and Ukraine. The goal is to obtain a larger, coherent picture of extinctions and evolution of species in a broader geographical area during an exciting interval in Earth's history.

The project also includes identifying pollen in contemporary pollen samples from Sweden (from the 1970s onwards), its composition, and the occurrence of exotic species. Fieldwork and curating paleontological material may also be included in the project, as well as some administrative tasks.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Palynological analysis and research on plant and plankton associations focusing on Sweden's and Ukraine's Mesozoic (Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous).
• Linking Sweden's Mesozoic stratigraphy of terrestrial and marine successions with Eastern European floras and faunas focusing on Ukraine.
• Collecting abundance and diversity data of palynomorphs using transmitted light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
• Analyzing data and publishing articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
• Laboratory work with the preparation of pollen samples.
• Fieldwork with sampling for palynological preparations.
• Digitizing preparations and other sub-collections.
• Participation in museum-wide events such as Geology Day or other initiatives may occur.

QUALIFICATIONS

Requirements

• PhD in geoscience (e.g., paleontology, geology).
• Knowledge in terrestrial and marine palynology.
• Knowledge in Sweden's and Ukraine's Mesozoic stratigraphy of terrestrial and marine successions.
• Knowledge and experience in data analysis and publishing articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
• Knowledge and experience in digitizing collections.
• Experience in microscopy.
• Good knowledge of English and Ukrainian in both spoken and written form.

Meritorious

• Experience in preparation and publication in the field of paleo-palynology.
• Knowledge of taxonomy of Mesozoic pollen, spores, and dinoflagellates.
• Experience in paleontological fieldwork.
• Knowledge of how to use light microscopes and scanning electron microscopes.

As a person, you need to be structured and enthusiastic, as well as able to work independently and collaborate with others.

OTHER

Our goal is to show the way to increased knowledge and action through research and public activities, so that together we can contribute to a sustainable and bright future. Our long-term ambition is for the employees of the Swedish Museum of Natural History to reflect the diversity that exists in Sweden. We welcome all applicants regardless of gender, background, origin, and functional variation.

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