Individual Placement - Species-at-Risk Monitoring and Forest Management

Student Conservation Association•Jacksonville, FL

7d•Onsite

About The Position

The SCA member will support INRMP projects “Forest Management Support”, and “Species-at-Risk Monitoring Support”. By doing so, the SCA member will support the Navy’s mission and warfighter preparedness by helping to ensure NAS Jacksonville complies with federal laws and avoids legal restrictions that could limit the use of crucial training lands, use bird data to inform the reduction of bird-aircraft strikes and improve pilot safety, summarize data that can be used to buffer the installation against encroachment, perform tasks that will help obviate critical habitat designation on the installation, preemptively identify conservation issues and regulatory hurdles to maximize mission flexibility, and strengthen positive relationships with regulators, the local community, and non-government conservation groups. NAS Jacksonville, like all Navy installations, uses an ecosystem-based approach to forest management to comply with federal laws, sustain high yields of quality forest products, enhance floodplain resiliency, manage protected species habitat, eliminate the spread of invasive species, and provide realistic training grounds for military training and operations. This project will include assessing forest conditions, identifying and helping to control invasive species, monitoring protected species, locating and entering migratory bird data into the Avian Knowledge Network (AKN), relocating gopher tortoises from mission-sensitive areas on NAS Jacksonville and Outlying Landing Field (OLF) Whitehouse, and participating in outreach and education efforts. Specific to gopher tortoise management, the individual will assess burrow sites and track tortoise movements by handheld receivers so that location information may be shared with regulatory agencies. Pursuant to procedures outlined in the Gopher Tortoise Candidate Conservation Agreement (GTCCA), an annual assessment report is required.

Requirements

Individual must be minimum 18 years of age and pass required background and motor vehicle record checks.
Individual must have own vehicle for personal transportation.
Individual must be able to convey relevant education and/or experience.

Nice To Haves

Wildlife Survey Experience
Data Collection Experience
GIS/Mapping Experience

Responsibilities

Access government common access card (CAC)-enabled networks, websites, and applications to correspond with colleagues and partners, enter and manage data, prepare reports, and receive direction for work, among other daily tasks;
Operate a government vehicle, as approved by SCA and the NAS Jacksonville Environmental Director, to accomplish tasks at, and on behalf of, all installation properties;
Track changes in natural communities;
Find, identify, and remove invasive species;
Review migratory bird survey data and add data to the Avian Knowledge Network;
Identify and assess potential habitat for gopher tortoises and other species at risk. Assist in gopher tortoise surveys, tracking, and research;
Survey for listed plant species and animal species;
Record observations of all listed species and indications of habitat suitability for transfer to habitat community maps;
Maintain live exhibits at the NAS Jacksonville Black Point Interpretive Center, including snakes, turtles, and fish. The applicant must be comfortable handling and feeding snakes;
Conduct educational classes for tenants and youth groups;
Prompt completion of required federal and state training (e.g., gopher tortoise, least tern), enter bird survey data into AKN as assigned, and maintain GPS location database of surveys for gopher tortoises, invasive plants, birds, and other species.
Create maps as necessary; conduct rooftop bird surveys when required