Support the goal of healthy and sustainable wildlife populations by bringing your expertise in both marine species biology and the technical intricacies of data management.

Primarily working with marine mammals, seabirds, and shorebirds data, be involved in the data management life cycle including data collection and quality control, processing, as well as data use and interpretation.

You will also provide a high level of customer service by providing internal and external customer support for using species data, such as consultation and interpretation, and the creation of custom data and map products.

As the data steward and curator, responsible for quality assurance and quality control, management, interpretation, usability, delivery, and support of analyses of marine species data.

This is an opportunity,

To support marine species surveys by aligning survey protocols with species data requirements, assisting with the development of data collection tools, and participating in species surveys.

With your expert problem-solving skills,

Coordinate with WDFW (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife) staff to determine business needs, identify data gaps and solicit species data from internal and external sources.

We are seeking a candidate,

Who models WDFW values: Accountability, Service, Professionalism, Integrity, Respect, and Empathy (ASPIRE).

Duties:

Some of what our Marine Species Data Steward will enjoy doing,

Marine species data stewardship and management, including acquiring, translating, verifying, organizing, distributing, synthesizing, and analyzing spatial and tabular species data:

• Conduct quality control, translation, and processing of species data
• Incorporate new data and maintain existing species data in WDFW enterprise species databases
• Use or modify scripts and other automated geo-processing routines for managing data.
• Write and maintain business rules, metadata, and other documentation for species data management.

Support marine species surveys and other field data collection:

• Coordinate with biologists to define survey data collection procedures and protocols and to align survey protocols with species data rules
• Coordinate with IT staff on the development and testing of surveys apps, tools, and scripts for appropriately collecting, monitoring and quality control of survey data
• Support field biologists in the use of data collection software and applications
• Support the use of software and systems for managing data collected from camera traps and other, indirect species data collection surveys such as telemetry, acoustic recordings, or drone imagery

Support marine species evaluations, assessments, planning, and reporting:

• Compile, standardize and simplify data for use in species evaluations
• Identify appropriate data and advise staff on proper use and interpretation
• Create and provide maps, summaries, graphs, and other data derived from species surveys

Support marine species data requests from external customers, and data sharing or data exchange between WDFW and external entities:

• Identify appropriate data and compile this data, and related maps and species summaries, into request-specific, data sharing packages
• Distribute custom species data packages and advise requestee on proper use and interpretation
• Evaluate and ensure compliance with species data sensitivity policies and other data sharing guidelines
• Provide species data for permitting or compliance-reporting processes

WORKING CONDITIONS:

Work Setting, including hazards:

• This position primarily works in an office setting that includes reading, writing, phone, and computer use.
• This position involves occasional participation in surveys and other field activities that require working outdoors in terrestrial and aquatic environments. This may include working under conditions such as 12-hour workdays, inclement weather, walking over rough terrain or riding in rough water conditions and hiking long distances while carrying a light load of (up to 40 pounds) personal and survey equipment including but not limited to a GPS unit, camera, laptop and rangefinder.
• Working in or around boats in marine conditions and environments. Must be able to negotiate water in emergency situations.

Schedule:

• Typically, Monday – Friday, 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M
• May need to adjust the work schedule to meet occasional business needs such as fieldwork. This includes early mornings, evenings, or weekends

Travel Requirements:

• Occasional travel to WDFW offices and WDFW Wildlife Areas, conferences, trainings, or meetings with other agencies and external entities
• Occasional travel to field sites for participation in surveys and other outdoor activities

Tools and Equipment:

• Standard office and telework equipment such as a desk, filing cabinet, computer, printer, telephone, copy machine. Occasional use of survey and other field equipment

Customer Interactions:

• Interact and respond to inquiries from professional, external entities, state agencies, and partner organizations as well as members of the public. Communication is by phone, email, or in-person.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• A Bachelor's degree in wildlife management, environmental science, biology or a related natural resource discipline.

AND

• Three (3) years of professional experience in management, field-technician or research jobs involving wildlife, habitats, forestry, or a similar biological, environmental and natural resources field.

OR

• Two (2) years as a Fish & Wildlife Biologist 2

Please Note:

• A Master’s degree in an applicable science discipline will substitute one (1) year of the required experience.
• A PhD in the applicable science may be substituted for two (2) years of the required experience.

Certifications/Licenses:

• A Valid State Driver’s license.

Special Requirements/Conditions of Employment:

• Successful completion of agency training and/or certification for assigned watercraft is dependent on supervisory direction, position need and training availability.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

In addition to those required qualifications, our ideal applicant will also have some or all of the following:

Experience with:

• GIS desktop software, such as ArcPro, and using this software for data management, geo-processing, and spatial analyses at an intermediate level
• Microsoft Office software, including Excel and Access databases at an intermediate level, and using this software to query and summarize data
• Mobile data collection applications and devices
• Relational databases, such as SQL Server, and using these databases to query and manage data.
• Cloud-based software platforms such as ArcGIS.com, Amazon Web Services, or Azure and using related applications, such as webmaps and dashboards
• Managing electronic records of species surveys
• Scripting languages, such as Python or R, for automating data management
• Statistical software and understanding of statistical methods for evaluating species, species populations and species-habitat relationships

Knowledge of:

• Comprehensive knowledge of principles of conservation biology and wildlife management.

Familiarity with:

• Washington state species, their habitats, ranges and distribution.
• Field methods and survey protocols for monitoring and recording species and their habitats.

Ability to:

• Identify, organize, and document data for subsequent use in assessments and analyses.
• Learn new technologies and stay current with best practices for data management.
• Communicate complex subjects in a manner that is appropriate to both the topic and the audience.
• Accurately read, interpret, and retain information from technical reports, survey protocols, journal articles, maps and graphs.
• Work in natural environments or remote locations and participate in ground, water or aerial-based surveys.
• Operate electronic field equipment such as Global Position Systems (GPS) units, telemetry equipment, and mobile data collection devices.

Salary: $5,088.00 - $6,838.00 Monthly

Deadline: January 18, 2024

Learn more about this opportunity and how to apply.