Intern in bat bioacoustics and acoustic monitoring

Institute for Alpine Environment

Eurac Research is a private, multidisciplinary research centre based in Bolzano/Bozen, Italy, in the heart of the Italian Alps. Founded in 1992, it addresses major societal challenges through research on human health, environmental integrity, sustainable energy, and effective political and social systems. The centre employs more than 650 people and comprises 11 Institutes and 7 Centres.
The Institute for Alpine Environment is seeking an ambitious and motivated intern to support bat acoustic monitoring within the Biodiversity Monitoring South Tyrol project.
The Institute conducts problem-oriented research on mountain environments, with expertise in landscape ecology, global change, biodiversity, ecosystem services and sustainable development.
The internship will focus on the standardised acoustic monitoring of bats across terrestrial monitoring sites in South Tyrol. Using ultrasonic detectors, the project records bat calls to assess species occurrence and activity, including social and feeding activity. The intern will contribute to detector deployment and retrieval, acoustic data processing and call classification, and the organisation and quality control of recordings and associated metadata.
Applicants should have a degree in Biology, Environmental Sciences or a related field, and a strong interest in bat ecology. Practical experience with bat acoustic monitoring, ultrasonic recordings or call-analysis software would be an advantage. A good knowledge of European bat species, strong organisational skills and the ability to work collaboratively are desirable. Candidates should be comfortable working outdoors in alpine environments and available for occasional evening or night-time field activities.
The internship will be based at Eurac Research headquarters in Bolzano/Bozen, starting in May 2027 and lasting for at least five months. The starting date is flexible.

Tasks:

• Assist with the deployment, retrieval and routine checking of ultrasonic bat detectors at monitoring sites.
• Support the collection and organisation of acoustic recordings and associated metadata.
• Process and classify bat call sequences using appropriate acoustic analysis software, identifying calls to species or genus level where possible.
• Contribute to the identification of echolocation and social calls, where relevant to the monitoring work.
• Help distinguish commuting or passing activity from feeding activity in acoustic recordings.
• Carry out quality checks on recordings and assist with data management, species lists and datasheet preparation.

Requirements:

• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Biology, Environmental Sciences or a related discipline. Applicants must be current students or have obtained their degree no more than 12 months before the internship start date.
• Good knowledge of European mammals and bat species.
• Experience with passive acoustic monitoring, bioacoustics data processing or bat call identification is an advantage.
• Familiarity with acoustic analysis software and passive acoustic devices such as Wildlife Acoustics Song Meter Bat and Elekon Batlogger, with a careful approach to data quality.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to work collaboratively within an interdisciplinary team.
• Good English skills. Knowledge of Italian or German is an advantage.

We offer:

• An internship contract lasting approximately six months, starting in May 2027. The exact start date is flexible
• The opportunity to develop a Master’s dissertation using project data.
• Access to state-of-the-art facilities, including software, hardware and communication tools.
• The opportunity to work as part of a young, international and interdisciplinary team.
• Meal vouchers.
• Attractive working conditions at a Great Place to Work-certified organisation.
• Family-friendly arrangements and flexible working hours.