Postdoctoral position OT-27831
Post-Doctoral Position: High-Throughput Phenotyping and Performance Prediction in a Biological Control Parasitoid Wasp
06903 Sophia Antipolis
INRAE presentation
The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.
Work environment, missions and activities
INRAE Sophia Antipolis (France) is seeking a post-doctoral researcher to conduct research on high-throughput phenotyping and performance prediction in biological control, focusing on parasitoid micro-wasps of the genus Trichogramma.
The successful candidate will collaborate with teams involved in the TrichoPhenBio project jointly coordinated by the UMR Institut Sophia Agrobiotech (ISA, Sophia Antipolis, France) and the UMR Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble (SAVE, Bordeaux, France). This project aims to develop innovative phenotyping tools for predicting field performance of Trichogramma wasps, key biological control agents used against the grapevine pest Lobesia botrana.
The post-doctoral fellow will:
• Analyze field performance data from several Trichogramma strains obtained during field experiments conducted in vineyards in 2025.
• Measure phenotypic variability in the laboratory using and developing video-phenotyping methods.
• Assess the potential to predict field performance based on laboratory-measured traits.
• Supervise students involved in laboratory experiments.
• Contribute to the dissemination of results through scientific publications, conference presentations, and methodological sharing within the biocontrol community.
Training and skills
Required Profile
• PhD in biology, ecology, entomology, agronomic sciences, or related discipline.
• Experience in behavioral ecology, phenotypic trait measurement in arthropods, and work with live organisms.
• Solid skills in programming languages (R, Python, or similar) and interest in applying them to image/video data analysis.
• Solid skills in data analysis and statistics.
• Motivation for experimental laboratory work and for image acquisition and analysis.
• Curiosity, creativity, and scientific inventiveness.
• Strong teamwork and collaboration skills.
• Excellent scientific writing abilities.
• Experience in molecular biology techniques would be an asset.
INRAE's life quality
By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):
- up to 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.
How to apply
I send my CV and my motivation letter
All persons employed by or hosted at INRAE, a public research establishment, are subject to the Civil Service Code, particularly with regard to the obligation of neutrality and respect for the principle of secularism. In carrying out their functions, whether or not they are in contact with the public, they must not express their religious, philosophical or political convictions through their behaviour or by what they wear. > Find out more: fonction publique.gouv.fr website (in French)