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Posting Closing Date: 10/01/2025
$20 per hour
Minimum Qualifications:
2 years professional experience in a closely-related biological field or laboratory program is required.
A bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with a major in one of the biological sciences and one year of professional biological experience in a field or laboratory program; or
A master's degree from an accredited college or university in one of the biological sciences can substitute for the required experience.
Preferred Qualifications:
Preference may be given to candidates with the following qualifications: Marine mammal stranding-response experience is preferred.
Experience assisting with conducting high quality marine mammal necropsies and collect the necessary samples and data to determine cause of strand/death.
Experience with necropsy report writing and editing.
Knowledge and experience with grant writing and budgeting is highly desired.
The ability to safely operate and trailer boats less than 30 feet in length is also highly desired.
Requirements:
Employment in this position is contingent upon a satisfactory Level 1 background check at no cost to the candidate.
Office hours are from 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, Sunday through Thursday. Not eligible for Telework. Serves in local on-call status on holidays in a rotation with other field staff.
Responses to qualifying questions should be verifiable by skills and/or experience stated on the profile application/resume. Information should be provided regarding any gaps in employment.
Position Overview and Responsibilities:
Duties include but are not limited to fielding calls from FWC Law Enforcement, other agencies, and the public regarding marine mammals, particularly manatees and cetaceans, verification of mortalities and distressed manatees and cetaceans, potentially in need of rescue. Recovery of manatee carcasses from a ten-county area in Southwest Florida and stranded cetaceans from three of the those within the ten-county region. Conduct field necropsies on badly decomposed manatee carcasses and transport fresh to moderately decomposed manatee carcasses to the necropsy facility in St. Petersburg. Participate in the marine mammal stranding network, including coordination of capture and transportation of injured manatees and live cetaceans to the appropriate rehabilitation facility and conduct necropsies on fresh dead to badly decomposed stranded cetaceans Conduct aerial surveys of manatees, track radio-tagged manatees and photograph manatees for photo identification purposes. Participate in aerial synoptic surveys for manatees. Operate a computer and software such as Arcview, Excel, Access and Word. Participate in data entry, office work and extensive public outreach including working with the media. Perform tasks such as general cleaning of office and equipment, vehicle, trailer and boat maintenance and other tasks assigned by supervisor. Work long, unscheduled hours on short notice that include some evenings, most weekends and frequently on holidays. Occasional overnight travel required.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
Knowledge of: methods of data collection; principles and techniques of research and analysis; marine mammal anatomy and necropsy techniques; live and dead marine mammal stranding response techniques.
Skills: use of database, spreadsheet, word processing, and graphics software such as Microsoft Word, Access, Excel, and PowerPoint; use of scientific biomedical field equipment such as portable ultrasound, PIT tags, and biopsy equipment. Obtain boater safety certification within the first six months of employment.
Abilities: Must be able to swim proficiently. Field work is highly physical and applicant must be willing and able to lift 50 lbs on a regular basis. Must have the ability to work both as a team member as well as independently in various field situations. Must be able to work under adverse field conditions, potentially at night, on weekends and holidays. Must be able to establish and maintain effective and cooperative working relationships; think logically and apply problem-solving techniques; effectively communicate verbally and in writing; and maintain a valid driver’s License.