Position Description: The Western Snowy Plover Conservation Apprentice will be an employee of Point Blue Conservation Science and part of a five-person Point Blue team. The Apprentice will also participate in a multi-agency management team that works collaboratively to achieve snowy plover conservation outcomes. The collaborative team includes staff from Point Blue Conservation Science, CA State Parks (Santa Cruz and Monterey districts), USFWS (Salinas River National Wildlife Refuge), USFWS (Ventura Field Office), and US Department of Agriculture, Wildlife Services. The Apprentice will participate in field monitoring of breeding snowy plovers on Monterey Bay sandy beaches (50%), entering and managing snowy plover data (20%), implementing snowy plover habitat protections and other management actions (5%), and participating in collaborative team meetings (5%), while designing and implementing an individual project targeted toward achieving specific learning outcomes (20%). The individual project will be developed in consultation with a USFWS collaborator. Field work takes place on public beaches and entails using optics (binoculars and scope), color band resighting, behavioral observations, nest monitoring, and interacting with the public.
The Apprentice will work a total of 4.3 months (745 hours) between March-August of 2024. A start date of April 1st is preferred but could be as late as May 1st. Schedule is flexible and can be a combination of part-time during the final semester of an academic year and full time during the summer, or full time for a shorter duration.