Congratulations to Beatriz Portinha for receiving a starting grant for her PhD work, and Patrick Heidbreder & Jaakko Kuurne for receiving grants for their MSc theses!

Beatriz, Patrick and Jaakko are members of the SpecIAnt group, studying in their work speciation & hybridization in ants.

Beatriz's 6 months grant from Societas Pro Fauna et Flora Fennica (SFFF) guarantees her a start for her PhD work on the population history of mound-building ants, while Patrick’s funding from SFFF and Jaakko’s from The Kuopio Nature Friends Association support their MSc theses on the role of Transposable Elements in ant hybridization (Patrick) and the mitochondrial variation in the ants (Jaakko)! 

Well done!