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203 Elm Ave
Raleigh, NC 27611
rcollins@ncstate.edu
617 555 1212 (cell)
20 March 2023

Lynn Zimmerman
Research Associates Program Director
Great Basin Institute
16750 Mt. Rose Hwy.
Reno, NV 89511

Dear Lynn Zimmerman

I was very pleased to see the Carnivore Monitoring Crew Member position at the Great Basin Institute advertised on Ecolog list serve.  I am graduating with a Bachelor’s of Science in Fisheries and Wildlife Management from North Carolina State University this May.  For the past three summers, I have been a wildlife technician on two different projects where I did field work on black bears and small mammals in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee.  I believe that my degree and field work experience make me a very strong candidate for your position.  

Through earning my wildlife degree and work as a wildlife technician I have developed the specific skills you are looking for.  As a technician on Dr. Roger Powell’s Pisgah Black Bear Research project in 2020 and 2022, I worked as part of a team setting leg snare traps for black bear, checking the traps, anesthetizing bears, taking measurements, and putting on radio collars. I also did radio telemetry work and vegetation sampling. In 2021, I worked on a fisher introduction feasibility project in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  I worked as part of a two-person team in the back country live trapping small mammals as part of a mark recapture study to assess possible fisher prey-base. We backpacked out to remote sites for up to seven days. In both positions I was responsible to setting traps, handling wild animals, following specific protocols, and recording and maintaining datasets.  I believe that these skills will transfer to this position where I would be installing and checking various types of monitoring stations for fishers and martins and maintaining complete and acurate records.  I was responsible for driving 4-wheel drive vehicles safely, hiking up to ten miles a day with a pack.  Also, I have very good orienteering skills.  I took PE 253 Orienteering then put those skills to use in my summer jobs where I would need to use a campus and map to find an unmarked sites off trail. I believe that I am physically fit and have the outdoor skills needed to an important team member.  In my FOR 404 Forest Wildlife Management, we focused specifically on resource management and ecology of western forests though our textbook: Wildlife Habitats in Managed Forests, USDA Forest Service Handbook No. 553. I can work independently and enjoy working collaboratively as part of a team.  I strive to have a strong work ethic where my work is reliable.  I have honed my oral and written communication skills through earning a minor in English.  Taken together, I believe that I have the skills and knowledge-base needed to execute all aspects required of me as a member of the carnivore monitoring crew.

I am especially interest in the position at the Great Basin Institute because I am interested in how wildlife management and resource management are interconnected.  I plan to go to graduate school in wildlife conservation and feel that learning first hand how to monitor mustelid populations would be very valuable. My long-term goal is be a wildlife and resource manager for the federal government.

I am graduating in early May and have a car; I will have no problem starting work on or before 1 June. I enjoy being in remote areas and look forward to challenges and rewards that would go along with working as a carnivore monitoring crew member. Thank you very much for your consideration. Please contact me if you have additional questions or need further information.

Sincerely

Rachel Collins  

_______________________________________________________________________________

Parts of the Job Ad

II. Job Ad

Carnivore Monitoring Crew Member
Great Basin Institute and USFS Pacific Southwest Region Carnivore Monitoring Program

Description:
The Region 5 Carnivore Monitoring Program has been monitoring fisher and marten populations in the
Sierra Nevada Mountains annually since 2002. The fisher population was recently listed as endangered with the USFWS, and assessing their population and its response to recent tree mortality is a U.S. Forest Service priority. Broad-scale monitoring will help identify how tree mortality and subsequent extreme fires are influencing fisher occupancy, density, habitat use, diet and connectivity across the southern Sierras. This information can be used to better understand how fishers are adapting to this changed landscape and guide management to promote continued population persistence while also addressing the need to reduce fuel loads to prevent catastrophic wildfires.

Duties may include, but are not limited to:

  • Hike and navigate off trail in rugged field conditions to install and check monitoring stations including trail cameras,track plates genetic sampling devices.
  • Download, sort, and identify species in trail camera photos.
  • Inventory and archive all field data including genetic samples, track sheets, and trail camera
    photos
  • Conduct field data entry, proofing and summarization.

Timeline:
Early June - early November 2022
The timing of these positions are tentative and may be impacted by weather and/or the COVID-19 pandemic. Start and end dates may vary according to local conditions. Crew members are expected to serve full time, minimum 40 hours per week; 11-12 hour days are common throughout the season.

Compensation:

  •  $16 per hour with the possibility of overtime
  • Crew housing is provided free of charge (rent averages >$900/room/month in the nearby area).
    It is not mandatory to use crew housing, but locating housing options near the work site is generally difficult.
  • Health Insurance: The Great Basin Institute covers 100% of the premium for Health, Dental and
    Vision Insurance for each member.
  • Camping Per Diem: $15/night as necessary (usually 2-3 nights a week)
  • Uniform stipend: $200/person, given with first paycheck.

Qualifications:

  • Bachelors Degree in Wildlife, Ecology, Biology, Natural Resources or related subject with wildlife courses that demonstrate understanding of the principles of wildlife biology;
  • Familiarity with, and interest in, resource management issues of western states and the ecology of the Sierra Nevada ecoregion;
  •  Previous experience in wildlife-related fieldwork preferred;
  •  Ability to communicate effectively, both written and orally, with a diverse audience;
  •  Experience collecting and maintaining field data in an organized manner that is easily
    understood and accessible to other resources staff;
  •  Ability to operate 4WD vehicles on rocky, loose, hilly and narrow forest roads
  • Ability to read, interpret and navigate using topographic maps and compass;
  • Ability to live and work in rural and remote field and office setting, and enforce USFS and GBI housing standards;
  • Physically fit to serve outdoors, carry up to 50 pounds of personal and/or field equipment, and withstand the rigors of a densely forested and/or high desert environment in all seasons;
  •  Willingness and ability to camp in remote, primitive sites for several consecutive days;
  • Willingness and ability to consistently enact high performance standards and a strong work and
    team ethic in support of the mission of GBI and the goals and objectives of the USFS

How to Apply:
To learn more and apply, please follow the link below:
https://www.vscyberhosting.com/greatbasin/Careers.aspx?req=2020-ACI-062&type=JOBDESCR