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University of Birmingham

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PhD Studentship: CENTA 2027-B18 Modelling function in the jaws of sharks throughout their evolutionary history University of Birmingham in United Kingdom

Degree Level

PhD

Field of study

Environmental Science

Funding

Available

Deadline

Jan 6, 2027

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Country

United Kingdom

University

University of Birmingham

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Keywords

Environmental Science
Biology
Earth Science
Comparative Anatomy
Multibody Dynamics
Functional Morphology
Ct Imaging

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About this position

[Funded through the CENTA3 DLA and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). Covers an annual stipend, tuition fees at home-fee level, and a Research Training Support Grant.]

This PhD studentship investigates how the jaws of sharks have evolved and how different jaw forms affect feeding function across both living and fossil elasmobranchs. The project is framed around the remarkable diversity of shark ecologies, from suction feeding and filter feeding to shell-crunching, and asks how the specialised shark feeding system has diversified through deep time.

The student will use computed tomographic data from fossil and living sharks to compare skull and jaw anatomy across the group. A central part of the work is to combine these anatomical datasets with multibody dynamics approaches to model feeding performance as a multipart system rather than as isolated structures. This should help reveal how variation in jaw arrangement influences function in sharks with different lifestyles and evolutionary histories.

The project sits within a comparative functional morphology and evolutionary biology context, linking living anatomy with the fossil record of isolated teeth and rare preserved cartilages. It draws on the growing availability of tomographic datasets for shark skeletal anatomy and builds on recent studies of chondrichthyan feeding mechanics and jaw evolution.

The studentship is offered through CENTA3 DLA at the University of Birmingham and is part of a broader research environment focused on quantitative analysis of vertebrate skeletal function and evolution.

Funding details

Available

What's required

Applicants need at least a 2:1 at UK BSc level or a pass at UK MSc level or equivalent. International students are eligible for up to 30% of the cohort. International applicants must meet the University of Birmingham's international student entry requirements, including English language requirements.

How to apply

Read the project information page for full details of the studentship. Apply via the CENTA project page and follow the instructions on the CENTA website for studentship applications.

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