Post Doctoral Research Fellow (Bioacoustics)

This is an exciting opportunity for an outstanding postdoctoral researcher to join an innovative European Union–funded project aimed at understanding the environmental and societal impacts of expanding drone operations. You will join the TUNED project (Toolkit for Noise and Societal Impact Assessment of U-Space-Enabled Drone Operations), (full‑time on a fixed term contract for 18 months, anticipated to commence on 1 March 2027) which uses empirical data and machine learning to assess the effects of drone noise on people and wildlife. These innovations will deliver a step-change in how the noise impacts of drone operations are assessed, providing much-needed evidence to reduce disturbance to communities and nature.

You will develop novel approaches for assessing the responses of avian assemblages to drone noise and characterise thresholds of noise sensitivity, contributing to the development of impact assessment criteria for the TUNED framework. 

Key aspects of the role include:

• Design and conduct field experiments to investigate responses of birds to noise.

• Collect, manage and analyse passive acoustic data.

• Apply automated tools to annotate and classify bioacoustic data.

• Develop open-source analytical pipelines.

• Develop robust metrics to model the risk of noise exposure for birds.

The position requires a strong background in bioacoustics, ecological field work, data analysis and ideally previous experience with investigating wildlife responses to anthropogenic noise.

The TUNED project is led by Prof. Antonio J Torija Martinez, an international leader in drone noise research, and co-funded by the European Union (Grant Agreement No. 101287704) and supported by the SESAR Joint Undertaking and its founding members. You will be supervised by Dr Amy Leedale, a behavioural ecologist specialising in bioacoustics, animal communication and anthropogenic impacts on wildlife.

You will work across the Acoustics Innovation Institute and the Environmental Research and Innovation Centre (ERIC) at the University of Salford. The Acoustics Research Centre is one of the largest acoustics research groups in Europe, providing an internationally recognised environment for interdisciplinary research in acoustics. ERIC brings together researchers working across biodiversity, ecology and evolution, providing a collaborative research environment and access to state-of-the-art facilities and equipment.

Key Responsibilities include:

• Conduct research aligned with the TUNED project plan.
• Coordinate with international consortium partners.
• Assist the Project Coordinator and the WP6 leadership team in delivering activities under WP6.2: Noise Impacts on Wildlife. 
• Publish high‑quality research outputs and contribute to project reporting.

We welcome applications from candidates who have the following:

• A PhD (or nearing completion) in bioacoustics, ecology, zoology or a related discipline.
• Experience with collecting and analysing passive acoustic data.
• Expertise in experimental design and ecological field work.
• Experience of annotating bioacoustic recordings and using species classification tools.
• Strong communication and teamwork skills

What's in it for you? 

• Competitive salary - and excellent pension scheme
• An impressive 32 days leave - plus bank holidays, additional time off at Christmas and the opportunity to buy even more!
• Professional development - we offer a comprehensive package of training and development opportunities to help you achieve your full potential

JOB DESCRIPTION