Individual Placement - Sea Turtle Surveys at Naval Station Mayport

Student Conservation Association•Jacksonville, FL

6d•$400•Onsite

About The Position

Naval Station Mayport, located in Jacksonville, Florida, requires a single SCA Member to assist the Natural Resource Manager with managing a sea turtle monitoring program and a variety of other natural resource management and conservation tasks. The Member’s primary duties are managing a diverse group of volunteers, conducting sunrise surveys and monitoring of sea turtle nests, and accurately entering and curating sea turtle nest data. The Member will be expected to provide training to volunteers, lead groups of volunteers during beach walks, create the monthly work schedules of over 100 volunteers, and communicate with select volunteers throughout the week. As needed, the Member will respond to reports of injured or dead wildlife and respond accordingly, which may include driving a government truck to deliver animals to an animal hospital. The ideal Member will be interested in learning methods for surveying birds and entering bird survey data in the Avian Knowledge Network. Finally, the Member will assist with removing invasive plants, produce outreach materials, and plan and host volunteer-based work efforts.

Requirements

Valid driver license and a personal vehicle in good working condition.
Must successfully pass a Department of Navy security clearance investigation.
Bachelor of Science in biology or related field.
Excellent communication, organization and planning skills.
Must be flexible and able to adapt to schedule changes and unexpected incidents; Excellent data management skills.
Must be punctual and comfortable starting work before sunrise.
Must be able to walk 2 miles on a beach and occasionally lift heavy objects and use hand tools.
Member should have, or be working toward, a degree in biological sciences (e.g., wildlife biology, marine biology) or related field.
Driving a motor vehicle for the partner agency/organization is a requirement for this position.
Be able to complete or fulfill all partner driving requirements.

Nice To Haves

Experience identifying sea turtle tracks, monitoring sea turtle nests, and conducting inventories at nests of the sea turtle species that occur in Florida, especially loggerhead sea turtle, is highly preferred
Public speaking
Experience coordinating the work schedules of over 100 volunteers
Experience working with volunteers and coworkers representing a wide range of ages, abilities, and knowledge
Strong ability to think and plan proactively in order to avoid errors and mishaps
Because Member will work on an active Navy base, Member must be comfortable working in a military atmosphere
Ability to tolerate typical Florida conditions including, but not limited to, hot and humid weather, rain, strong wind, biting and stinging insects, and cacti.

Responsibilities

Manage Naval Station Mayport’s sea turtle monitoring program including, but not limited to, the following: successfully complete required trainings, including a 2-day in-person training; train volunteers (oral presentations); recruit new volunteers; create and distribute monitoring schedules each month; maintain daily communication (text) with Lead Volunteers; conduct daily sea turtle nesting surveys, mark nests, conduct inventories at nests, and record data in FFWCC’s Survey123 Apps; maintain data spreadsheets and complete end-of-season reports; respond to reports of injured and dead turtles, potentially after hours or during weekends; deliver weak and injured turtles to an animal hospital; educate beach visitors about Base policies and appropriate beach conduct; In general, tasks will be performed by working closely with Naval Station Mayport’s natural and cultural resources manager; Find and remove invasive plants; Survey for and monitor gopher tortoise burrows; Be available during the workday, after hours, or select weekends to respond to reports of dead and injured wildlife and transport injured wildlife to animal hospitals; Be available after hours and weekends to communicate (usually by text) with volunteers; Conduct surveys for nesting shorebirds and enter data in an FFWCC database; may conduct surveys for landbirds (point-counts) and secretive marsh birds. Enter historic and new bird survey data in the Avian Knowledge Network.
Design and install outreach and information materials such as signs and flyers to improve conservation outcomes
Assist other Public Works Department Environmental staff and the Installation Environmental Programs Director