Individual Placement - Botany and Restoration at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument

Student Conservation Association•Ajo, AZ

3d•$720•Onsite

About The Position

This position will support the botany program at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument (ORPI) by contributing to vegetation monitoring, invasive species management, and landscape restoration efforts. This position will primarily be conducting fieldwork throughout the monument, including backcountry settings and along the international border.

Requirements

Experience working with hand-held GPS, maps, and compass for field navigation and data collection.
Ability to perform manual, physical labor for up to 10 hours per day, exposed to the elements, and must be able to occasionally lift and/or move 50 pounds or more.
Ability to communicate effectively, both written and orally, with a broad audience.
Ability to live and work in rural and remote field and office setting.
Must possess a clean, valid, state-issued driver’s license.
Due to the remote setting, a personal vehicle is required.
Participants must be between the ages of 16 and 30, inclusive, or veterans age 35 or younger.
Participants must also be a citizen or national of the United States or lawful permanent resident alien of the United States.

Nice To Haves

Experience conducting fieldwork in a desert environment.
Familiar with the flora of the Sonoran Desert and/or experience identifying plants to species-level using a dichotomous key.
Degree or coursework in botany, ecology, natural resources, or a related field.
Familiarity with various desktop and mobile mapping software including Avenza, ArcGIS Pro, ArcMap, AGOL, Field Maps and Survey123.

Responsibilities

Mapping and documenting invasive plant populations, hand-pulling invasive plants, and assisting with herbicide application under the supervision of a certified applicator.
Watering and maintaining current nursery stock, propagating native plants for restoration outplanting, assisting with germination trials, and maintaining the compost pile.
Restoration of illegal off-road vehicle routes via raking, vertical mulching, outplanting native plants from the nursery and watering them, installing and replacing restoration signs and t-post, installing erosion barriers, and operating trail cameras to monitor site re-use.
Assisting with surveys for rare and endangered species.
Assisting with the removal of invasive plants and performing vegetation maintenance to keep the trails and spring channel in good condition.
Recording field data on a variety of devices and assisting with data entry.
Assisting with other Resource Division programs, including wildlife biology, physical sciences, cultural resources, and ecological monitoring.