The rare and declining hairy wood ant (Formica lugubris) in Ireland: Investigating future translocation options and feasibility

About the Project

The Department of Biology at Maynooth University is pleased to announce that a PhD Scholarship will be available for a suitably qualified and successful applicant intending to commence their PhD studies in September 2026.

Project Title: The rare and declining hairy wood ant (Formica lugubris) in Ireland: Investigating future translocation options and feasibility

The position will be supervised by Dr Tara Dirilgen, based in the Department of Biology at Maynooth University, Ireland. The student will work closely with the project steering committee and will join the Terrestrial Ecology Lab research group.

Project Description

This National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) funded project is seeking a highly-motivated and enthusiastic student for a PhD position investigating hair wood ant translocation options and how they can be applied to Ireland. The Hairy Wood Ant (Formica lugubris) is a near threatened species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list, which has shown a significant retraction in its range in Ireland over the past century. It is now confined to a handful of conifer plantations across the island. The future of this species in Ireland is unknown, facing many challenges from various land use practices and a changing landscape. This is a monogynous species (1 queen per nest), meaning methods to artificially translocate this species to restore to its former range are not straightforward, and currently unknown.