Wildlife Monitoring – Assistant Bird Bander
Assistant Bird Bander:
Vaseux Lake Bird Observatory
CONTRACTEE
Okanagan Similkameen Conservation Alliance
SITE
Vaseux Lake Bird Observatory
LOCATION
Okanagan Falls, BC, Canada
PLEASE APPLY BEFORE
June 15, 2023
Description: The Okanagan Similkameen Conservation Alliance (OSCA) seeks applications for one contracted Assistant Bander position
Site
Vaseux Lake Bird Observatory (VLBO). VLBO is a moderate-volume banding station running continuously since 2000. The station is located on the west side of Hwy. 97, 1 km north of Vaseux Lake and 4 km south of Okanagan Falls, BC. The station is located on land owned by Environment Canada (Vaseux Bighorn National Wildlife Area) and the BC Ministry of Environment. Migrants are sampled by capturing with 14 mist nets, banding, a daily census, and general observations.
The assistant bander will work outdoors in all weather. The banding station is either a trailer or screened tent. Volunteers will assist with site set-up, census and banding activities. Since banding concludes early each day, applicants will have ample free time to enjoy all the nearby recreational opportunities of the South Okanagan.
The station is open to visitors including students and members of the public. An additional stipend is paid for assisting with on-site school programs and post-secondary tours.
See further information on the field station and banding protocols at https://vlbo.wordpress.com/about/ and Facebook page @vaseuxlakebirds (https://www.facebook.com/vaseuxlakebirds?mibextid=LQQJ4d )
Contract period
Work at the site starts July 30 and ends October 16, and includes three days for site set up and take down, including brush removal for the net lanes, banding area and trails. Banding operations commence August 1 and ends October 15th and starts 30 minutes before sunrise daily for a period of 7 hours.
Applicants must be a Canadian Citizen, permanent resident or hold a valid Canadian work visa.
Assistant Bander Responsibilities
The Assist bander will be responsible to assist the bander-in-charge and gain proficiency in the following tasks:
– Site preparation and take down
– Working under the established VLBO survey protocols
– Safe extraction of birds from mist nets.
– Safe bird Banding
– Banding data entry.
– Identifying at least 75% of the common birds by sight or sound for daily census.
– Working with and assisting in supervising and training volunteers.
– Communicate with the public and school groups on banding and migration.
– Willingness to work in inclement weather
Assistant Bander Requirements, Skills, and Experience
Applicants demonstrating some, or all, of the following requirements, skills and experience will be preferred.
ü Previous experience in the safe removal and assistance in banding of birds from mist nets
ü Ability to identify, by sight or sound, at least 75% of the commonly occurring passerines found in Western Canada.
ü Good communication and public speaking skills
Contract fee:
$5780 for 30-hours over 5 days per week for 11.5 weeks.
To assist renumeration, shared field housing near the station is provided at no cost.
To Apply:
Please submit a cover letter, resume, and contact information of three academic or professional references to vaseuxlakebird@gmail.com Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled, but please continue to submit resumes even if you are concerned you missed our cutoff, as we plan to grow the station in the future.
Questions should be directed to vaseuxlakebird@gmail.com
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