SEA-TO-SUMMIT PhD Project: Plant Persistence Across Macaronesian Elevational Gradients

SEA-TO-SUMMIT PhD Project: Plant Persistence Across Macaronesian Elevational Gradients

Decision overview

CREAF is recruiting a predoctoral researcher for SEA-TO-SUMMIT, reference 26-059-IV00253, with Sandra Nogué as the named grant PI and enquiry contact. The scientific attraction is the combination of long-term ecological records with modern biodiversity and evolutionary information, asking why some plants persist while others decline. The employer/research host is CREAF; the intended degree-awarding institution is the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) through its PhD in Terrestrial Ecology.

The advertised FPI appointment is full-time, 37.5 hours/week, for at least 48 months, with €25,456.15 gross annual salary. January 2027 is a planned start, conditional on final project approval and the ability to charge expenditure to the grant. It is not an unconditional start-date guarantee. The application deadline is 30 November 2026, with no verified cutoff clock or time zone; current acceptance status has not been verified. The UAB admissions timetable saved with the 22 October evidence ends its final regular pre-registration round on 28 November, so the hiring/admission sequence needs checking early. Exact official vacancy.

The project offers quantitative ecological training with conservation relevance. Its value depends on access to suitable records, the student's actual share of the genomic/phylogenetic work, and the implementation of the conditional contract. Fees, fieldwork expenses and immigration support need written clarification. No individual admission probability is implied.

Research question and doctoral work

The advertised project examines plant persistence over the Holocene, approximately 11,700 years, focusing on the Canary Islands and Azores and their coastal-to-montane gradients. Fossil pollen records will be integrated with contemporary biodiversity, traits, phylogenetic and genomic information to distinguish persistence, expansion, decline, disappearance and reappearance. It offers training in pollen-based reconstruction, R statistics, biodiversity informatics and genomics with the Botanical Institute of Barcelona, and island modelling/phylogenetics with Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands, alongside reproducible research and open science.

Potential duties include Canary Islands fieldwork, analysis of palaeoecological/biodiversity/genomic datasets, publications, conferences, communication, journal clubs and lab collaboration; final tasks are tailored to the candidate. Neither the advertised training nor partner names guarantee a fixed visit, individual laboratory allocation or a joint degree.

The difficult inference is that a change in a fossil signal is not automatically a change in local species survival. Pollen production, transport, preservation, identification and dating affect what can be inferred. Modern traits and genomic measures may also describe different taxonomic or temporal scales from the historical records. A strong thesis would make those linkages explicit and examine sensitivity to chronology and identification choices, rather than presenting every absence as extinction or every association as evolutionary causation.

Possible contributions include testing whether elevation modifies persistence after accounting for human disturbance; comparing trait-based and phylogenetic explanations; or integrating independent environmental histories with vegetation trajectories. These are analytical suggestions, not additional admissions requirements or a promise that every dataset is already complete. Early discussion should establish which records exist, what new work is realistic and how the project will remain feasible if fieldwork or a data component is delayed. The lab's research overview explicitly combines microfossils, geochemistry, sedimentary ancient DNA and bioinformatics, supporting an interdisciplinary interpretation while leaving the student's exact work package open.

School, subject and doctoral training

Employer and degree-awarding institution

CREAF is the employing ecological research centre and laboratory host. UAB awards the PhD in Terrestrial Ecology; its associated research setting includes the Department of Animal Biology, Plant Biology and Ecology and CREAF. Other collaborators supply expertise, not automatically additional qualifications. The programme page lists 15 programme places, which is not the number of posts in this recruitment.

Ecology research environment

The ranking publisher’s profile in the saved evidence reports 48th worldwide in Ecology in the 2026 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects. The ShanghaiRanking profile and UAB subject-ranking table agree on this year and subject. This is an ecology research indicator, not an overall UAB rank, a separate CREAF position or an individual supervision score. CREAF's September 2026 account of its 2025 activity reports a CERCA A assessment and Severo Ochoa programme development, but also identifies laboratory space and employment conditions as continuing institutional challenges.

Training and progress review

The saved UAB permanence rules provide four calendar years for full-time cohorts starting from 2023–24 onward, a two-year minimum and a possible requested one-year extension. They refer to five annual-review registrations. These academic rules do not fund an employment extension. Annual progress review and an approved research/training plan form part of the programme. Required activities include conference attendance/presentation and submission of research to an SCI-indexed journal; this is not a promise of acceptance by a journal.

The vacancy describes weekly laboratory meetings, regular individual mentoring, CREAF Talks every two weeks, CREAFuture training, transferable-skills and career activities, and an independent thesis committee. CREAF's academic training overview places this support within a wider ecology, biodiversity, climate and environmental-methods environment. Frequency statements are advertised arrangements; the formal supervisory agreement and timetable still require confirmation.

Supervisor, team and three recent original studies

Sandra Nogué Bosch is identified as a senior researcher on her CREAF profile, and the vacancy names her grant PI. Her work addresses island vegetation, biodiversity stability and past environmental disturbances. Her UAB research profile confirms BABVE/CREAF affiliations and leadership of the separate ERC TIME-LINES project. That project demonstrates an active related research programme; it is not the funding identifier of SEA-TO-SUMMIT, which is PID2025-174835NB-I00. Contact: s.nogue@creaf.uab.cat.

The lab team includes expertise in long-term ecology, geochemistry, ecological genetics and bioinformatics, alongside doctoral researchers. This is useful evidence of complementary skills, but no listed team member is automatically appointed co-supervisor. Nogué's publication roles below offer more specific evidence of scientific involvement than job titles alone.

The three studies below are published original empirical research from 2022–2025. The evidence covers selected full-text sections, including the methods, interpretation, limitations and author contributions specified for each paper; it does not cover every page, reference, supplement or underlying dataset. The related 2026 Science Advances island-biodiversity article and 2025 Nature Reviews Biodiversity article are reviews, while the 2023 Nature Ecology & Evolution item is a commentary.

Pollen traits in Canarian laurel forest, 2022

Sandra Nogué; Lea de Nascimento; Laura Graham; Luke A. Brown; Luís Antonio Gómez González; Alvaro Castilla-Beltrán; Josep Peñuelas; José María Fernández-Palacios; Kathy J. Willis. “The spatiotemporal distribution of pollen traits related to dispersal and desiccation tolerance in Canarian laurel forest.” Journal of Vegetation Science 33(5), e13147 (2022), online 25 August 2022, accepted 5 August 2022. DOI 10.1111/jvs.13147. The official university PDF supplied the selected scientific reading; the publisher record confirmed dates.

The study links modern forest plots and fossil pollen with trait patterns. Nogué jointly developed the concept/original draft and contributed data/analysis. Unequal pollen production and long-distance dispersal limit local interpretation; some relationships were inconclusive, and evolutionary adaptation was not tested. It is a direct regional and trait-analysis foundation for this PhD.

Reading scope: abstract, selected methods, discussion/limitations, conclusions and contributions; no supplementary-material reading.

Human arrival and South Pacific floristic homogenisation, 2024

Nichola A. Strandberg; Manuel J. Steinbauer; Anna Walentowitz; William D. Gosling; Patricia L. Fall; Matiu Prebble; Janelle Stevenson; Janet M. Wilmshurst; David A. Sear; Peter G. Langdon; Mary E. Edwards; Sandra Nogué. “Floristic homogenization of South Pacific islands commenced with human arrival.” Nature Ecology & Evolution 8(3), 511–518 (2024); online 15 January 2024, issue March 2024, accepted 7 December 2023. DOI 10.1038/s41559-023-02306-3.

The publisher full text analyses 15 sites on 13 islands over 5,000 years. Nogué is last/co-corresponding author and co-designed the study; the listed code writers are other authors. The work connects historical floristic similarity with human arrival, while site effects and proxy limitations prevent a universal altitude-refuge claim. It offers a comparative framework, not Macaronesian validation.

Reading scope: abstract, results, discussion, selected methods, data/code availability and contributions; supplements were not inspected.

Azores elementome trajectories, 2025

J. de la Casa; S. Nogué; M. De Cáceres; S. Pla-Rabés; J. Sardans; M. Benavente; S. Giralt; A. Hernandez; P. M. Raposeiro; J. Peñuelas — all ten authors in the order printed in the article, retaining its initials. “Unveiling two millennia of ecosystem changes in the Azores through elementome trajectory analysis.” Ecological Indicators 176, 113630 (2025); online 22 May 2025, issue July 2025, accepted 18 May 2025. DOI 10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.113630.

The official lab-hosted paper combines five lake records and trajectory indicators. Nogué contributed supervision, conceptualisation, data curation and revision. Geochemical signals mix catchment and lake processes; the exact analysis database is available on request. Its relevance is complementary environmental reconstruction, not a direct genomic test of persistence.

Reading scope: abstract, data methods, selected discussion/conclusions, CRediT and data availability; not all pages or supplements.

Funding, contract conditions and fees

The advertised gross annual salary is €25,456.15 each year, described as 75% of a €33,941.46 reference salary from the 2024 state-employees' M3 table. It may change if new salary amounts are approved. Neither net pay, payment frequency nor future increases have been verified. The project names MICIU/AEI and EU co-funding, but explicitly conditions contract activation on the final project resolution and eligibility of expenditure. Ask what happens if approval or the intended January 2027 start is delayed.

The consolidated EPIF decree provides the training/research purpose of a predoctoral contract, standard duration limits and remuneration minima. The vacancy's 75% offer for every year should not be replaced by lower generic statutory percentages. Conversely, “at least 48 months” should not be read as guaranteed indefinite continuation: clarify the signed term, any previous predoctoral-contract time, evaluations and applicable extension rules. A full-time contract does not guarantee completion of a degree.

The programme page in the saved evidence advertises approximately €540/year in doctoral fees. This is an institutional price indication, not a confirmed personal out-of-pocket bill. The 2025–26 fee schedule, used only as a dated reference, separates supervision (€401.12), record management (€69.80) and specific services (€70). The 2026–27 itemised total remains unverified. First-year registration guidance also flags foreign-study equivalence charges and possible complementary-course fees. Confirm which charges CREAF/the FPI award pays, waives or reimburses, as well as fieldwork, sequencing/analysis, conferences, research visits and relocation. An advertised salary alone does not identify those payers.

Bellaterra, housing and practical living costs

The laboratory is in the UAB/CREAF Bellaterra environment in Cerdanyola del Vallès, within the Barcelona region. The job-board label “Hybrid (Barcelona)” does not establish permission to complete the doctorate remotely overseas. Fieldwork and laboratory collaboration require a workable presence arrangement.

UAB's 2026 travel guidance describes an approximately 35-minute FGC rail segment from Plaça Catalunya to Universitat Autònoma, using S2/S6 services. Its additional 5–7-minute walk is to conference Building B, not a measured walk to CREAF. A personal door-to-door commute must add the route to the departure station, waiting and the actual laboratory walk. Living centrally offers city access but adds commuting; Bellaterra/Cerdanyola options may be more practical for daily presence. Current rail fares and service frequency remain unverified.

The UAB international handbook last updated July 2025 gives a student planning range of €800–1,200/month, with rented-room, food, transport and personal categories. It is an older comparator, not a January 2027 housing quote or a promise that an employed researcher can live at the lower end. Deposits, temporary accommodation, travel, document translation and permit costs can create initial cash needs. Without personal tax/deduction and current rent information, a savings estimate would be unreliable.

Vila Universitària's postgraduate guidance recognises PhD acceptance documents, describes postgraduate studios and lists an initial €170 deposit plus a further monthly-payment-sized deposit. Some packages include utilities and cleaning; contract length and availability vary. Confirm whether a CREAF-employed UAB doctoral researcher can book the relevant category. Undergraduate-only discounted room prices should not be assumed applicable.

For non-EU applicants, UAB's research work-permission guidance and the Spanish ministry's current research-residence guidance distinguish contracted researchers from doctorates without contracts. CREAF must confirm the correct employer-led procedure and support. Being admitted to a degree or selected for a post does not itself grant permission to work or enter Spain. A generic student-visa threshold should not be substituted for the contracted-researcher requirements.

Eligibility and the two application processes

Required for this vacancy: bachelor's and master's degrees in biology, environmental sciences, ecology, biogeography or a related subject; analytical/quantitative experience with datasets and statistics; interest in palaeoecology, island biology and evolutionary ecology; fieldwork and research-team experience; excellent spoken/written English. R experience is an asset, and willingness to learn basic conversational Catalan is desirable. Neither becomes a requirement to arrive fluent in Catalan or already expert in every advertised training method.

Other assessable conditions include travel availability, relevant research interest/experience, scientific projects/publications/presentations, independent and multidisciplinary work, problem-solving, public communication, one or two professional referees and a valid Category B driving licence. Ask how the licence is assessed and whether a foreign licence is usable for the intended fieldwork. The recruitment gives priority to a recognised disability of at least 33% when compatible with the job's performance; it does not describe the disclosure route or resulting adjustments/support, or state a separate preference for other groups, so applicants should ask CREAF.

Submit through the CREAF job board and its instructions only: the supplied English CVA template, a motivation letter shorter than one page, and bachelor's/master's transcripts in Catalan, Spanish or English. Submission through another portal is not accepted. Selection checks minimum eligibility, then uses objective scoring, shortlisted interviews and a proposed exercise. The exercise and timetable are not published. An additional research proposal is not listed as a vacancy requirement; a concise research-direction discussion may be useful preparation, rather than an invented mandatory attachment.

UAB doctoral admission is separate. Its general access rules allow non-EHEA qualifications after university verification of Spanish master's-level equivalence and entitlement to doctoral access in the awarding country; this does not constitute general recognition of that degree for other purposes. A Chinese qualification is therefore not automatically excluded or automatically accepted. The programme also assesses ecology/conservation preparation, English, research experience and an interview. Its academic selection weights are 60% academic record, 20% interview, 10% research experience and 10% English, distinct from the job's unspecified scoring.

The programme requires tutor/supervisor acceptance documents. Its optional motivation letter of up to two pages does not replace CREAF's under-one-page limit. Foreign-document legalisation can be completed after the initial admission stage but is required for registration. The programme and general legalisation guidance differ in the wording of acceptable translations from other languages; obtain a doctoral-office ruling for Chinese credentials before paying for translation. No specific IELTS/TOEFL score or exemption was verified for this call.

The final regular UAB 2026–27 pre-registration window in the saved evidence is 17 October–28 November, with resolution by 15 December; CREAF closes recruitment 30 November. Ask whether early admission, an exception or another agreed sequence applies. Do not assume the earlier date makes the position impossible or that job selection bypasses university admission. Registration rules normally require enrolment within one month of admission and subsequent annual registration.

Career value and next questions

The principal transferable skills are ecological time-series analysis, R/reproducibility, proxy interpretation, biodiversity informatics, scientific writing and interdisciplinary research. Potential destinations include academic ecology, environmental research, conservation/restoration organisations and natural-system management. These are programme-linked directions, not verified placements or employment forecasts. A thesis built around palaeoecology will not automatically confer professional genomics expertise unless the student's own work and training substantiate it.

Before submitting: confirm the exact 30 November cutoff clock, UAB admission sequence, recognition/translation route and CVA/referee requirements. At interview: define existing records, fieldwork permissions, individual genomic/phylogenetic responsibilities, co-supervision and fallback plans. Before accepting: obtain the final grant/contract position, fee and research-cost payer, actual start arrangements, permit support and a current housing budget.

Specific questions remain:

• How will UAB's 28 November pre-registration date be reconciled with CREAF's 30 November recruitment deadline?
• What exact cutoff clock/time zone and CVA version apply, and how should referees be supplied?
• Which supervisor/tutor documents, English evidence and foreign-degree legalisation/translation documents are required at each stage?
• What project approval and expenditure conditions must be met before the January 2027 start can proceed?
• What term, evaluation, prior-contract counting, pay schedule, deductions and increases will the signed contract specify?
• Who pays annual registration, equivalence, complementary training, fieldwork, genomic analysis, conferences and visits?
• Which pollen records and modern datasets are secured, and what new data must the student generate?
• Who provides formal co-supervision and the Botanical Institute/Naturalis components, and which visits are funded?
• How are fieldwork driving, travel insurance, permits and accessible working arrangements handled?
• What on-site/hybrid pattern, researcher housing category and non-EU work/residence support apply?

Evidence date: 22 October 2026. Paper conclusions reflect the selected sections described above. The dated fee and living-cost references do not establish personal 2027 costs, and the contract remains conditional.

Evidence and Sources

Project, university and training

• SEA-TO-SUMMIT 26-059-IV00253 exact official recruitment
• UAB PhD in Terrestrial Ecology
• ShanghaiRanking UAB institutional profile
• UAB scientific-field ranking explanation
• CREAF 2025 annual report institutional summary
• UAB general doctoral access rules
• UAB foreign-document legalisation
• UAB doctoral duration/current cohort
• UAB first-year registration 2026–27
• UAB 2026 Bellaterra travel guidance
• UAB international support: research work permission
• CREAF academic training environment

Supervisor, laboratory and original studies

• Sandra Nogué Bosch CREAF senior researcher
• Sandra Nogué UAB research profile
• Temporal Ecology and Biogeography Lab
• Temporal Ecology and Biogeography Lab team
• Nogué et al. 2022 original pollen-trait study
• Wiley official bibliographic date for JVS13147
• Strandberg et al. 2024 island floristic homogenisation
• de la Casa et al. 2025 Azores elementome original study

Contract, fees and living costs

• Consolidated Spanish EPIF royal decree
• UAB 2025–26 administrative fee schedule
• UAB international handbook July 2025
• Vila Universitària postgraduate accommodation
• Spanish ministry research residence guidance