Job Announcement: Wetland Ecology Research Associate

The Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) at Colorado State University (CSU) seeks one experienced Wetland Ecology Research Associate to work closely with CNHP’s Wetland Team on all aspects of wetland condition assessment projects in Colorado. Pre-field season activities includes logistics and planning, securing permission to access sites on public and private land, preparing field maps in ArcGIS, and preparing field supplies. During summer field seasons, the position acts as Field Crew Lead, coordinating the work of other field team members and communicating with the Wetland Team Leader, as well as actively collecting field data on wetland condition. Post-field season activities include quality control of field data, identifying collected plant specimens, entering field data or working with interns and work studies to enter data, and collaborating with the Wetland Team Leader on data analysis and report writing.

To apply and view a complete position description, please visit: http://jobs.colostate.edu/postings/16757.   

Applications deadline is August 24, 2015. 

Reflecting departmental and institutional values, candidates are expected to have the ability to advance the Department's commitment to diversity and inclusion.

CSU is an EO/EA/AA employer and conducts background checks on all final candidates.

Job Announcement: Wetland Ecology Field Technician

COLORADO NATURAL HERITAGE PROGRAM
Position Announcement:

The Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) at Colorado State University (CSU) seeks 4 experienced field technicians for summer field work assessing the condition of wetlands throughout the lower Arkansas River Basin in southeast Colorado. Positions require field botany and ecology skills. Pay rate is $2000-2800/month. Position duration is 3 or 5 months (May–Sept or June–Aug 2015). Knowledge of plant taxonomy and species identification required. Preferred qualifications include experience in wetland or riparian ecology, local flora, and familiarity performing field work for long days (10+ hours).

Field technician Spencer Rubin surveys wetlands on the
Southeastern Colorado Plains in 2014.

Fieldwork will take place in wetlands and riparian areas ranging from excellent to poor condition as part of a wetland condition assessment project in the lower Arkansas River Basin. Standard duties will involve driving and hiking to field sites; in-field plant identification, in-office plant identification with a microscope; detailed completion of field survey forms, data entry, landowner interaction; and extensive collection of vegetation, water, soil, wildlife habitat, and environmental data. Data will be collected using both rapid assessment protocols and more in-depth vegetation surveys. Field housing will likely be based in Pueblo, CO. Some camping and travel will be necessary.

Field technician Cat Weichmann surveys wetlands on the
Southeastern Colorado Plains in 2014.

To apply and view a complete position description, please visit and select Wetland Ecology Field Technician Research Associate I.

First consideration of applicants will begin February 16, 2015. Applications will continue to be considered until all positions are filled or until July 31, 2015, whichever comes first.

Reflecting departmental and institutional values, candidates are expected to have the ability to advance the Department's commitment to diversity and inclusion.

CSU is an EO/EA/AA employer and conducts background checks on all final candidates.

Wetland Ecology Field Technician Job Announcement

The Colorado Natural Heritage Program is looking for 1 or 2 experienced field technicians for summer field work assessing the condition of wetlands throughout the lower Arkansas River Basin. Positions require field botany and ecology skills. Preferred qualifications include experience in wetland or riparian ecology, local flora, and familiarity performing field work for long days (10+ hours).  

Fieldwork will take place in wetlands in natural areas and in created wetlands managed for wildlife habitat, as part of a wetland condition assessment project in the lower Arkansas River Basin. Standard duties will involve driving and hiking to field sites; in-field plant identification, in-office plant identification with a microscope; detailed completion of field survey forms, data entry, landowner interaction; and extensive collection of vegetation, soil, wildlife habitat, and environmental data. Data will be collected using both rapid assessment protocols and more in-depth vegetation surveys. Field housing will likely be based in Pueblo, CO. Some camping and travel will be necessary.

To apply and view a complete position description, please visit: the WCNR job page.  First consideration of applicants will begin on February 17, 2013. Applications will be accepted until position is filled or until July 31, 2013.

Wanted: Wetland Ecology Field Technicians for Summer 2013 work!

The Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) at Colorado State University (CSU) seeks 4–6 experienced field technicians for summer field work assessing the condition of wetlands throughout the lower South Platte River Basin. All positions require field botany or ecology skills. Knowledge of plant taxonomy and species identification required. Preferred qualifications include experience in wetland or riparian ecology, knowledge of local flora, and familiarity performing field work for long days (10+ hours).

Fieldwork will take place in randomly selected wetlands in urban areas, agricultural areas, and more remote natural areas as part of wetland condition and wildlife habitat assessment. Standard duties will involve driving and hiking to field sites; in-field plant identification and in-office plant identification with a microscope; extensive collection of vegetation, soil, wildlife habitat, and environmental data; detailed completion of field survey forms; and landowner interactions.

For more details and to find out how to apply, read the full announcement here!

Wanted: Vegetation Mapping Field Technicians for Summer 2013 work!

The Colorado Natural Heritage Program at Colorado State University seeks experienced ecology and botany field technicians for summer field work on several vegetation inventory projects. The projects are located at the Niobrara National Scenic River and MissouriNational Recreation River in north central Nebraska, and The Bighorn CanyonNational Recreation Area in south central Montana and north central Wyoming. The work entails vegetation sampling and all positions require field botany or field ecology skills. Knowledge of plant taxonomy and species identification required. Experience identifying flora of the area is preferred. A crew lead position is available to suitably qualified candidates. 

CNHP field technicians hard at work!

Successful applicants will work in groups of two to sample vegetation communities in support of these vegetation inventory and map accuracy assessment projects. Field technicians will be based in housing near the project site and work will entail a combination of daytrips and multi-day backpack, canoe, or car camping trips. Crews will navigate daily to randomly selected sites to establish plot locations and document plant community characteristics. Many sample locations will be in remote areas of the park.

First consideration of applicants will begin January 1, 2013. 

Applications will be accepted for consideration through June 30, 2013. 

To apply, submit resume, cover letter, and 3 References (with phone #’s), online at the following address:

http://warnercnr.colostate.edu/employment-opportunities.html

Volunteers needed for Gunnison Climate Adaptation Project

Join The Nature Conservancy, the Gunnison Climate Working Group, and other partners for the Gunnison Climate Adaptation Project Volunteer Days on Oct 13-14. Contact Betsy Neely (720-974-7015 or bneely@tnc.org) with questions.

Job Opening: Wetland Mapping Specialist

The Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) seeks an experienced GIS Analyst / Wetland Ecologist to carry out wetland mapping projects in Colorado. The successful candidates will use automated and manual computer processing to convert existing hard-copy U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) National Wetland Inventory (NWI) maps to digital spatial data. The position will also update selected NWI maps through photo interpretation of color infrared aerial imagery and field verification. For certain projects, supplemental data analysis and report writing may be required. In addition to wetland mapping, the Wetland Mapping GIS Specialist / Ecologist may also conduct field work in the summer months on wetland condition assessment projects.

Old vs. new wetland mapping

Applications will be accepted for consideration through

September 24, 2012.

To apply and view a complete position description, please visit:

http://warnercnr.colostate.edu/employment-opportunities.html.

CSU is an EO/AA employer. Colorado State University conducts background checks on all final candidates.

 

Typical sub-alpine wetland, in mapping-view.

Volunteer Power: The New CNHP Wetland Mini-Herbarium

After several months of hard work and attention to detail from our awesome aspiring-botanist volunteers, we now have a mini-wetland herbarium at CNHP. As a result, Julie White, a wildlife biology major/restoration ecology minor at Colorado State University, has achieved five-star celebrity status at our wetlands program. She dedicated several hours per week of volunteer time for an entire semester to this project; sorting plants, updating nomenclature, and identifying high quality pressed specimens from 4 years of field survey plant samples. She has been involved in this project from beginning to end, her organizational skills are excellent, and there is no doubt she’s learned to sight-ID many wetland families and genera in the process.

CNHP volunteer Julie White completing the last bin from the herbarium project.

 Not only will this wetland herbarium be invaluable to botanical training for many field seasons to come, but an in-office wetland herbarium will streamline post-field plant identification. We expect that this new resource will save us huge amounts of time each year. Alex Dameron and Sere Williams were also key contributors who gave many volunteer hours to the earlier stages of the herbarium project. We can’t thank our volunteers enough for their generous time contributions and hard work!

This 4-foot stack of empty plastic bins was once full of pressed plants from many sites and years of field surveys. Now to our wetland team’s delight, these have been distilled into the best specimens of each species, organized and sorted by taxonomy for future reference!

Field Botanists Wanted!

The view from Jackson Lake, Grand Teton National Park. Photo courtesy of Monica Kopp, one of our GLORIA volunteers from last year.

CNHP is looking for qualified volunteer field botanists to assist with a project in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming. All travel expenses will be paid, including per diem. Transportation is provided. Work will be in early August, for approximately 10 days.

The project involves sampling vegetation at high elevation monitoring sites in the Park. Work involves backcountry travel and volunteers must be willing to backpack. This research is part of the GLORIA project, a global observation network for the comparative study of climate change impacts on alpine biodiversity. Data from the project will be used to examine climate-induced changes of vegetation cover, species composition, and species migration. For more details, contact Bernadette Kuhn or Joe Stevens.

Adopt-a-Rare Plant Trainings 2012

The Adopt-a-Rare Plant Program (ARP), was revived last year as a collaborative effort between the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP), Denver Botanic Gardens, and the Colorado Native Plant Society after a several-year hiatus.  The program was revived in order to update records of the increasing numbers of rare plant populations that had become "historic", meaning that they have not been observed in over 20 years.  In addition, these plant occurrences, which were last seen in the mid-1980s were documented before GPS was widely-available, so their locations were not precisely mapped. 

When it comes to imperiled species in Colorado, 75% are plants. CNHP tracks more than 500 plant species.  With limited people and financial resources to update records, the ARP program is designed to increase the impact that volunteers can have on conserving our rarest plants.  So last year CNHP and the Botanic Gardens trained more than 30 new volunteers to help rediscover lost populations.  During the field season these volunteers spent over 325 hours scouring the countryside.  They visited 17 species at 25 sites and relocated 15 historical occurrences.

Astragalus detritalis (debris milkvetch) is a S2-G3 plant found in just a couple of counties in Colorado and Wyoming. Photo by ARP volunteer Larry Allison.

The program was such a success that additional trainings were held this spring. The first was held in February at the Denver Botanic Gardens, and the second was just completed in April at the Yampa River Botanical Gardens in Steamboat Springs. We now have over 60 citizen scientists trained and ready to volunteer their time to find rare plants in Colorado.

Ipomopsis globularis (globe gilia) is a S2-G2 plant found only in Colorado. Photo by ARP volunteer Suzanne Wuerthele.

Ipomosis globularis habitat. Photo by ARP volunteer Suzanne Wuerthele.

If you’d like to participate in the program, we need help entering the data from the 2011 visits into our database. Contact CNHP Botanist Jill Handwerk for more information.

Job Opening: Weed Mapping Technicians

We have seasonal job openings for up to 6 experienced field mapping technicians to map noxious weed species at the U.S. Air Force Academy and Farish Recreation Area in El Paso County, Colorado.

This position requires field botany and basic GIS skills. The successful candidates will be able to use dichotomous keys or field guides to correctly identify weed species, and have the necessary technical skills to use GPS and ESRI’s ArcPad and ArcGIS software to accurately map and attribute infestations. Field work will be performed independently, and you must provide your own transportation daily to the work location. A computer station will be provided at the Air Force Academy for daily data download and processing.

Work duration will be approximately from April through September, 2012. First consideration of applicants will begin April 2, 2012. Applications will be accepted until all positions are filled. For more information on the position and how to apply, see the full announcement on our Employment and Volunteering page.

Job Opening: Zoology Field Technicians

We have seasonal job openings for up to 12 Zoology Field Technicians to survey for mammals, amphibians, birds, reptiles, and invertebrates throughout Colorado.

Potential projects include:

• General inventory for rare animals in various locations throughout Colorado 
• Inventory of rare animals on Colorado State Land Board Stewardship Trust Lands throughout Colorado 
• Preble’s meadow jumping mouse monitoring in central Colorado
• Boreal toad survey and breeding site monitoring in the central mountains
• Amphibian surveys in the central and northern mountains 
• Rare mammal surveys (including bats, shrews and other small mammals) in the central and northern mountains 

These positions will require extensive travel and long days in the field. Be prepared to camp using your own equipment, although occasional nights in motels or rented houses within project areas may also be provided. Dates for these positions will be approximately from May 1, 2012 through October 31, 2012 and will vary depending upon project.

First consideration of applicants will begin March 22, 2012. Applications will be accepted for future consideration through October 31, 2012. For more information on the position and how to apply, see the full announcement on our Employment and Volunteering page.

Job Opening: Wetland Ecology Field Technicians

We have seasonal job openings for 4 to 6 Wetland Ecology Field Technicians to work throughout the lower South Platte River Basin this summer.

All positions require field botany or ecology skills. Knowledge of plant taxonomy and species identification is required, and experience in wetland or riparian ecology, knowledge of local flora, and field work experience involving camping and backpacking is desired. Standard duties will involve driving and hiking to field sites, in-field plant identification and in-office plant identification with a microscope, detailed completion of field survey forms, and interaction with landowners.

First consideration of applicants will begin February 19, 2012. Applications will continue to be accepted until all positions are filled. For more information on the position and how to apply, see the full announcement on our Employment and Volunteering page.

Application Deadline extended for Team Leader/Database Developer

Closing date to apply for the Conservation Data Services Team Leader and Database Developer job opening has been extended 2 weeks, so that the last day to apply is now May 22, 2011.

Re-opening Student IT position

If you are currently enrolled as a student at Colorado State University, and are either a Junior in Computer Science, Computer Information Systems, or Information Management OR have demonstrated comparable experience, CNHP is looking to hire a part-time Student IT Tech I to help us manage our computer network.

The new closing date is May 8, 2011, or until the position is filled. Read the full announcement for more information and how to apply. For information about being a student employee at CSU, see the Student Employment Services website.

Boulder County looking for volunteer plant monitors

Happy Earth Day everyone!

Our friends at Boulder County Parks and Open Space are looking for volunteer plant and invasive species monitors. Volunteers will get to visit some of Boulder County's most scenic properties while collecting ongoing scientific data in the field.

Plant monitors will identify and record plants within predetermined locations in June, July, and September to evaluate the success of seeding projects. Invasive species monitors will identify and map the location of weeds from May to September to determine areas of management concern and success.

The schedule is flexible as long as you commit to volunteering 12-16 hours per month. Knowledge of local flora (native and exotic) is preferred. Natural Resource Monitors must be at least 18 years old. Application deadline is April 29th (next Friday). For more information and an application, contact Michelle Bowie at 303-678-6219 or mbowie@bouldercounty.org.

Job Opening: Conservation Data Services Team Leader & Database Developer

The Conservation Data Services (CDS) Team supports Colorado's conservation information needs through GIS mapping, data management, database development, and related computer services for recording and presenting biological and natural resource information. The team maintains CNHP's Biodiversity Tracking and Conservation System (BIOTICS) database, providing the most comprehensive source of locational information about imperiled species and ecological communities in Colorado. We work closely with government, private land managers, and owners to provide a central clearinghouse to collect and compare information on these vital biological resources across jurisdictional and land ownership boundaries in Colorado. The CDS Team also creates customized mapping, database, and website products to aid staff and clients in managing biological resources, and/or analyzing biological field sampling data.

The CDS Team Leader coordinates the statewide implementation of CNHP's information with partners and clients, including federal, state, and local agencies, as well as both non- and for-profit organizations. The CDS Team Leader supervises the CDS Team (3-5 staff) and is supervised by the Director. CNHP's work is funded entirely through grants, contracts, and agreements, and as a member of the Leadership Team the CDS Team Leader will need to actively pursue funding opportunities. Approximately 25-33% of this person's time will be spent on Team Leader duties, while 66-75% will be spent on grant writing and serving as principal investigator on database related projects.

Closing date is May 8, 2011.

***UPDATE***
The closing date has been extended to May 22, 2011.
************

For more information about the position and how to apply, please see the announcement on the Employment and Volunteering page of our website.

Job Posting: Student IT Technician

If you are currently enrolled as a student at Colorado State University, and are either a Junior in Computer Science, Computer Information Systems, or Information Management OR have demonstrated comparable experience, CNHP is looking to hire a part-time Student IT Tech I to help us manage our computer network.

Closing date is March 27, 2011, or until the position is filled. Read the full announcement for more information and how to apply.  For information about being a student employee at CSU, see the Student Employment Services website.

Summer job pools filling up fast

As a follow-up to our earlier flurry of field and mapping technician job postings (here, here, and here), we wanted to let all you prospective applicants out there know that 4 of the 7 pools are either officially filled or have so many applicants already that we have pulled the announcements from our Employment page so we can get down to the business of processing all the applications. So, if you still haven't applied to one of our remaining job pools, don't delay!

As always, you can apply to more than one job pool, but please do so separately for each position and be sure to clearly state for which position you are applying.

One more job posting

We have added a seventh job pool to our Employment and Volunteering page!

This posting is for up to 12 Zoology Field Technicians to work throughout the state of Colorado this summer.

Those hired will survey for mammals, amphibians, birds, and invertebrates. Specific study sites will be in various locations throughout the state. These positions will require extensive travel and long days in the field, and the ability to navigate in remote areas using topographic maps, compass, and GPS. These positions may also involve properly collecting and preparing specimens for identification when appropriate.

First consideration of applicants will begin February 28, 2011. Applications will be accepted for future consideration through December 31, 2011. Read the full announcement.

Please note, we have a number of very similar-sounding job announcements up right now. You can apply to more than one job pool, but please do so separately for each position and be sure to clearly state for which position you are applying.