LEAD Position for Black Rail Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS) Field Season

(LEAD position) Technician Position to Investigate Black Rail Occupancy and Habitat Associations at South Padre Island

Position Overview: As part of a Texas Parks & Wildlife Department funded project, the technician will assist a PhD student (Tabitha Olsen) in investigating questions regarding patterns of rail species occupancy associated with habitat associations and land management practices. This project will involve considerable fieldwork, including dawn/dusk surveys for rails at Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS), as well as vegetation sampling in the latter half of the season. Both technicians will need to be prepared for both team and independent work.

Positions Hiring: 1 lead field technician

Position Starting Date: 01 March 2024

Position Ending Date: 31 July 2024

Pay: $17/hr (40hr work weeks)

Housing: Field Housing and camping sites provided

Specific Essential Job Functions:

Responsibilities include:

    Call-playback surveys for Black Rail

    Deployment of trail cameras

    Deployment of Autonomous Recording Units

    Vegetation sampling (collecting biomass, identifying 5-10 genus/species of relevant plants)

    Entering data into spreadsheets to assist with summary reports

    Lead technician must coordinate with PhD student on daily activities, progress, and other aspects of the season

Job Qualifications:

    All candidates must possess the minimum of a bachelor’s degree in an appropriate discipline and have had education or research experience closely related to the primary mission of the project.

     Must be willing to drive to Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS), South Padre Island

     Must be able to work long hours in a variety of spring/summer field conditions (e.g., swarms of mosquitos)

   Applicant must be capable to walk several miles in salt marsh in a given day while carrying a backpack over uneven terrain

   Applicants must have a valid driver’s license and will be required to pass a standard background check.

    Lead technician must have time management skills

Experience Required:

     Experience in identifying (by sight and sound) relevant bird species that occur in coastal Texas, particularly in salt marshes, is required. Relevant species songs and calls include: Black Rail, Yellow Rail

       Must have experience conducting point counts or other similar bird survey techniques.

      Lead technician must be familiar with programming AudioMoths, or willing to be trained/shown by PhD student

Experience Preferred: Experience conducting vegetation surveys is preferred, as is familiarity with and an ability to orienteer using a GPS unit.

If interested in applying, please contact Tabitha W. Olsen at tolsen@tamu.edu (or tabithawolsen1@gmail.com) with the following documents:

Email header stating: PAIS Rail Position Application

Cover Letter

CV

Contact of at minimum 3 references

If you have any questions, please email Tabitha Olsen at tolsen@tamu.edu