Overview

Position Summary:

WCS Canada is seeking an undergraduate student with a passion for conservation and an interest in bats to fill the position of Bat Tree Roost Monitoring Technician.

This student position will assist WCS Canada biologists to monitor tree roosting bats, learning to identify roosts in trees, and evaluating the use of mitigation tools. Such tools include chainsaw cuts and installation of fake bark on young trees to simulate old growth/mature trees that are needed by bats for roosting. In this position, the technician will learn valuable skills needed in the forestry industry to identify ‘wildlife habitat features’ used by bats – these WHFs are legally protected features in the Kootenay region of BC, and soon to roll out province-wide.

This student will also help monitor and evaluate new mitigation tools that replace lost roosts from forestry. As a technician, this student will work closely with a graduate student from the University of Northern BC (collaborator) to further study and understand the characteristics of trees used by bats in winter and summer. This is a unique area in interior BC to study what tree-roosting bats use, as it has only recently been discovered that bats in BC can reside year-round in trees.

The goal of the project the student will work on is to inform the forestry sector on bat-friendly forestry practices including how to properly mitigate the loss of tree roosts. Options for roosts are limiting on the landscape due to harvesting, but this is compounded by climate change, which can render some roosts too hot for occupancy. In general, roost microclimate options are being affected by climate change and the installation of artificial roosts as mitigation tools requires knowledge of what roost requirements are needed. Responsibilities of the intern include the following:

General Responsibilities/Activities:

  1. Assist in the capture of bats for the purpose of attaching transmitters to silver-haired bats (target species: being reviewed federally by COSEWIC for possible Endangered status due to mortality caused by wind turbines).
  2. Assist in the tracking of transmitted bats using telemetry equipment to locate tree roosts. Radiotelemetry is a highly transferrable skill used by biologists to track many species of fish and wildlife.
  3. Develop team-building skills during capture and tracking, where multiple field biologists will be working together.
  4. Learn how to describe tree roosts, including tree identification and associated habitat assessments.
  5. Make clear and detailed field notes including detailed descriptions and maps of roost trees where necessary, demonstrating and continuing to develop good communication and observation skills.
  6. Learn how to maintain and deploy bat detectors used in bat monitoring – this is a highly transferrable skill used by most consulting biologists for the inventory and monitoring of bats.
  7. Monitor artificial bat roosts and wildlife trees including visual inspections for bat use, guano collection, and inspection for use by non-target wildlife.

Qualifications:

  • 2nd-4th year university student in the biology/environmental field
  • A passion for nature and wildlife
  • Physically capable to work in strenuous physical conditions and be outdoors for long periods of time in winter.
  • Physically able to carry a 50lb backpack while in the field.
  • Able to work during the day and evenings/night when netting bats.
  • Up to date rabies vaccination in order to handle bats

Particulars:

  • $16.50/hour
  • Time Frame: January 2022 – April 2022
  • Full-time, Fixed-term

Benefits:

  • Reimbursement for rabies vaccination, if the applicant is not already vaccinated
  •  An accommodation allowance to support the cost of accommodation in Nelson, BC

How to Apply:

Please send your CV with a cover letter explaining your qualifications related to this role through the BambooHR application portal: https://wcscanada.bamboohr.com/jobs/view.php?id=23

Point of Contact: Emily de Freitas,  emdefreit@gmail.com

Deadline for applications: November 1, 2021

Requests for accommodation can be made at any stage of the recruitment process. Applicants need to make their requirements known when contacted. For questions regarding the application process please contact rchawngte@wcs.org

About WCS Canada: 

WCS Canada (www.wcscanada.org) was established as a Canadian conservation organization in July 2004. We are committed to championing accessibility, diversity, and equal opportunity. Our mission is to conserve wildlife and wild places by improving our understanding of and seeking solutions to critical problems that threaten key species and large wild ecosystems throughout Canada. We implement and support comprehensive field studies that gather information on wildlife needs and then seek to resolve key conservation problems by working with a broad array of stakeholders. We also provide technical assistance and biological expertise to local groups and agencies that lack the resources to tackle conservation concerns. WCS Canada is independently registered and managed while retaining a strong collaborative working relationship with sister Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) programs in more than 60 countries.