NATIONAL PARK SERVICE – MOJAVE DESERT NETWORK

+--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Length: | Term of positions is 23 weeks; | | | full-time 40 hrs./wk. | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Location: | Boulder City, NV | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Living Allowance: | $545 /week | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Housing Allowance: | $105/ week | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | AmeriCorps Award: | Position is eligible for an | | | AmeriCorps education award upon | | | successful completion of the | | | program. Value of education award is | | | $2,474 (pre-tax). | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Start Date: | 03/06/2023 | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Application Due Date: | Preference given to applicants that | | | submit application by 12/2/2022 | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Title of Position | Ecology Assistant | +--------------------------------------+--------------------------------------+

POSITION DETAILS:

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards) provides individuals with service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants work with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits building institutional capacity, developing community relationships, and supporting ecosystem health. Stewards in partnership with the National Park Service (NPS) and Mojave Desert Network are seeking an intern who will assist in collecting data about bats, vegetation and ecosystems within the parks. The Mojave Desert Network is one of 32 Monitoring Networks across the NPS, using information gathered for planning, research, education, and to help guide decisions related to park management. For more information see their website:

https://www.nps.gov/im/mojn/index.htm

The field work is dynamic and may be carried out across the MOJN parks (Castle Mountains National Monument, Death Valley National Park, Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, Great Basin National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Manzanar National Historic Site, and Mojave National Preserve). This position will require regular travel and camping during the field season in order to ensure that all monitoring is successfully completed during the field season, and may require long hours including nights, early mornings, and weekends. This position will primarily focus on bat monitoring activities for the first 3 months and then switch to vegetation monitoring for the remainder of the position.

 POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES WILL INCLUDE:

• Conducting capture surveys for bats in order to sample them for the presence of the fungus that causes WNS (training will be provided).
• Conducting acoustic monitoring following the North American Bat Monitoring Program protocol with some slight modifications (training will be provided) which includes deploying bat detectors at specified monitoring sites;
• Collecting data using Survey123 and Field Maps with tablets in the field.
• Walking up to 10 miles per day over uneven terrain;
• Hiking with backpacks that may weigh 30+ pounds;
• Collecting vegetation and soils data using established procedures;
• Conducting quality analysis/quality control for all data collected, either in the field or in the office; and
• Collaborating with MOJN staff in project planning, oversight of field safety and logistics, field protocol and data QA/QC, equipment organization and maintenance.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:  

• Bachelor’s degree in Biology or in one of the major natural sciences
• Experience hiking up to 10 miles a day for multiple days in potentially extreme conditions
• Experience camping for multiple days
• Must possess a valid driver’s license
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Applicants must pass a criminal background check which requires fingerprinting by an a DOI approved location prior to start date
• Must be 18 or older
• Must be a US Citizen and able to pass background checks.

 PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: Experience hiking in the desert

• Experience capturing bats and identifying them to species
• Rabies vaccination or titer check within the last 2 years
• Experience with deploying acoustic bat detectors
• Experience identifying plants of the Mojave and Great Basin regions
• Experience using ESRI products: Survey123 and Field Maps
• Experience working with Microsoft Office products (e.g., Word, Excel, Powerpoint)

BENEFITS:

• Position is eligible for an AmeriCorps education award upon successful completion of the program. Value of education award is $2,474 (pre-tax).
• Housing Allowance: $105/week.
• Living Allowance: $545/week (pre-tax)
• Wilderness First Aid

 HOW TO APPLY

Apply on-line at: https://stewardslegacy.org/open-positions.  In addition to your resume, please submit a one-page cover letter highlighting why you are interested in this position and how your background and experience will help you succeed in this position.

 If you have questions about this position please contact Sierra Miller, smiller@conservationlegacy.org, Stewards Program Coordinator.

 Stewards Individual Placements Program does not and will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all.

Required Skills Required Experience