Using Ancient DNA to explore the effects of land use change on small mammals

This PhD project will expand the potential of palaeogenomic methodologies to small mammals, specifically examining how water vole (Arvicola amphibius) and brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) populations responded to climate- and human-driven changes in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems through time. The project will generate a genome-wide dataset from archaeological, museum and modern samples which will then be utilised to explore demographic history of these species, as well as changes in population size and selective sweeps.