Job Summary  

Choleta is hiring a professional Natural Resource Specialist to support the collection of field vegetation inventory data for Ecological Site Descriptions from sites across Puerto Rico, archiving data, and developing research reports and publications to share findings for a federal agency 

Supervisory Responsibilities: No  

Job Classification: Permanent; Part-Time 

Duty Station: San Juan, Puerto Rico  

Travel:  Up to 50% contingent on business needs     

Duties/Responsibilities  

• Collects soil and vegetation data for several common land uses, including forests, range, pasture, wetlands, beaches, orchard, and field crops 

• Develops ecological site descriptions that will be included in soil survey publications following standards outlined in the National Ecological Site Handbook 

• Gathers field data and enter electronically to spreadsheets 

• Reviews species names and all data for accuracy and consistency 

• Develops site reports containing vegetation data, ancillary data, photographs, and field notes 

• Communicates and meets regularly with agency collaborators 

• Coordinates field sampling with agency partners 

• Develops a final project report in collaboration with coauthors for submission to federal agencies or other appropriate research journal 

• Coordinates with all contributing authors and work with the COR to integrate comments and produce a final report 

• This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.  

Required Skills/Abilities  

• Technical knowledge of biology, rangeland ecology and plant dynamics, forest ecology and plant dynamics, soil and plant interactions, plant identification and physiology 

• Ability to communicate proficiently in both English and Spanish 

• Technical writing skills  

• Specialized skills in natural resource inventories 

• Familiarity with the local flora 

• Experience working with species inventory data 

• Experience organizing data, data quality assessment, and in reporting on field and electronic natural resource data. 

• Expertise in Microsoft Excel and Word 

• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills 

• Ability to work independently and as part of a collaborative team in field sampling 

• Experience with peer reviewed scientific publications 

Education and Experience  

• Required: Master’s Degree in Natural Resources 

• Required: At least Five (5) years of experience conducting field inventories, preparing reports for publication, organizing data, and developing peer reviewed science 

• Required: At least Ten (10) years’ experience living and working in natural resources in Puerto Rico. 

• Required: Bilingual (Spanish/English) communication skills 

Physical Requirements  

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer 

• This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, etc. 

• Ability to work in various terrains and/or weather conditions  

• Ability to travel as needed  

• Ability to lift to up 30lbs pertaining to field equipment needed