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Requisition No: 877343
Agency: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Working Title: FISHERIES & WILDLIFE BIO SCIENTIST IV - 77072809
Pay Plan: Career Service
Position Number: 77072809
Salary: $1,945.56 biweekly + benefits
Posting Closing Date: 07/05/2026
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Employment is contingent upon successful completion of a background check.
Position number: 77072809
Position Title: Fisheries & Wildlife Biological Scientist IV - Working Title: Private Lands Biologist
Rate of Pay: $1,945.56 + benefits
Supervisor: Luis Gonzalez, for inquiries (941) 661-1918 or Luis.Gonzalez@MyFWC.com
Broadband Code: 19-1023-04
Class Code: 5075
Position Location: Lake Wales Ridge WEA, Royce Unit Field Office, 1630 Royce Ranch Ave, Lake Placid, FL 33852
Region: Southwest
County: Highlands County
Working hours: 8:00 am - 5:00 pm, Monday-Friday
List of any subordinates supervised: None
Residency requirement: None
Percent of Travel Required: 0-25%
Agency information: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)
Our organization: The FWC envisions a Florida where fish and wildlife are abundant and thriving in healthy and connected natural landscapes with vital working lands and waterways; where natural resources are valued and safely enjoyed by all; and wherein natural systems support vibrant human communities and a strong economy.
Our Mission: Managing fish and wildlife resources for their long-term well-being and the benefit of people.
Every organization has an identity that is forged not only by what it does, but by how it conducts itself. The values embedded in our mission and expressed in the vision of the FWC are to make quality decisions by being dynamic, science-informed, efficient, ethical, collaborative and committed to the vitality of the state and its environment.
Minimum qualifications: A high school diploma and 7 years professional experience in a closely related biological field or laboratory program is required. A Bachelor of Science degree in a relevant field can substitute for four of the 7 years of required experience.
Preferred qualifications: Bachelor's Degree in Biology, Wildlife or Fisheries Management, Zoology, Environmental Sciences or other closely related curriculum and three years of professional experience in a natural resource program. Degrees in Wildlife Management / Ecology or other natural resource fields are preferred.
Description of position: The Office of Conservation Planning Services (OCPS) is seeking an energetic and motivated candidate to work within a team of wildlife biologists providing assistance to private and public landowners. This position offers the opportunity to influence management decisions on a landscape level by developing and fostering long-term partnerships with private landowners who own and manage over half of Florida's natural resources.
OCPS provides scientific support and technical assistance to a wide array of private and public sector landowners and local, state, and federal governmental entities on habitat-related issues. OCPS develops comprehensive habitat-based management plans, develops and implements incentive programs for private landowners such as payment for ecological services, provides recommendations for implementation of habitat management programs on private and publicly-owned land, and conducts habitat assessments on conservation easements such as gopher tortoise recipient sites. This position will directly influence the management of both game and non-game species such as white-tailed deer, quail, turkey, waterfowl, Florida panther, gopher tortoise, black bear, indigo snake, scrub jay, wading birds, and others.
The OCPS Southwest Region Team's primary function is development, administration and delivery of voluntary, incentive-based habitat improvement programs including, but not limited to, FARM Bill Conservation Programs, Forest Stewardship Program, Landowner Incentive Program, Panther Payment for Ecosystem Services Program, Gopher Tortoise Recipient Site Program, and Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program. This position will have the opportunity to closely coordinate and act as a liaison to implement FARM Bill programs including but not limited to CTA, ACEP, EQIP, and CSP.
Duties and responsibilities:
Includes but are not limited to building and fostering long-term partnerships with landowners, biological data collection and analysis; developing maps using ArcGIS Pro & ArcGIS Online; writing Conservation Stewardship Plans, reports and land management prescriptions; monitoring and evaluating program-funded fish and wildlife habitat enhancement activities, collecting wildlife observations in the field, and planning and conducting educational workshops and field days.
Desired qualifications include:
The ability to positively communicate with a wide variety of landowners who have different land-uses and objectives for their property, passion for motivating landowners to actively manage their habitats in ways that benefit wildlife, the ability and desire to be open-minded while working within a team of biologists to develop long-term partnerships with private landowners, the ability to multi-task as well as work alone when needed, Geographical Information System experience, excellent communicative skills both verbal and written, knowledge of Florida plant/animal communities, the ability to trailer and operate off-road vehicles such as UTVs, knowledge of habitat management techniques, the ability to travel overnight less than 25%, work alone in the field 50% of the time, and public speaking ability.
In addition to submitting an electronic State of Florida employment application and completing the qualifying questions, please attach a cover letter. This letter should at minimum explain your interest in the specific organization and position and identify your most relevant skills or experiences. Answers to qualifying questions must be validated in the application, resume and cover letter.
Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center (1-866-663-4735). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.
The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.
VETERANS' PREFERENCE. Pursuant to Chapter 295, Florida Statutes, candidates eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive preference in employment for Career Service vacancies and are encouraged to apply. Certain service members may be eligible to receive waivers for postsecondary educational requirements. Candidates claiming Veterans' Preference must attach supporting documentation with each submission that includes character of service (for example, DD Form 214 Member Copy #4) along with any other documentation as required by Rule 55A-7, Florida Administrative Code. Veterans' Preference documentation requirements are available by clicking here. All documentation is due by the close of the vacancy announcement.
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