Staff Ecologist, Full-Time (Sacramento Valley)

We’re looking for an ecologist with experience or interest in rangeland and land management to join our Sacramento Valley office. Candidates may be based in counties of the Sacramento Valley or Sierra Foothills, or Contra Costa, Solano, San Joaquin, or Napa Counties. The anticipated pay range for a full-time position is $67,000―$88,000 annually plus a generous benefits package and bonus program.

What it’s like to work with us

H. T. Harvey & Associates has a reputation for deep scientific expertise and a high caliber of work in pursuit of our mission to create ecologically sound solutions to our clients’ complex natural resource challenges. The staff ecologist will become part of the 7-person Sacramento office. Our projects are in the Sacramento Valley as well as in the broader San Francisco Bay Area, Central Valley, Sierra Nevada, and Cascade Mountain regions. The Sacramento office team has particular experience in projects focused on ecological restoration and on the long-term stewardship and monitoring of watersheds, rare and endangered species, habitat preserves, and similar conserved lands, often within the context of working agricultural lands or other multi-use landscapes.

Our scientists, including our most senior-level staff, spend time both in the field and in the office (working remotely or from an H. T. Harvey office). Field work includes biological resources surveys in support of impact assessments, long-term biological monitoring, land stewardship, conservation plan development and implementation, and biological resource impact avoidance.

H. T. Harvey & Associates ecologists produce biological resource reports, natural resource management plans, mitigation and monitoring plans, biological resources sections of environmental documents, regulatory permit applications, and similar technical documents. Our staff ecologists are guided by the expertise and training of senior ecologists, and we encourage collaboration among our staff with combined expertise in plant ecology, wildlife ecology, restoration ecology and fish and aquatic ecology, rangeland ecology, landscape architecture, GIS, and other ecological disciplines.

Candidates may be based in counties of the Sacramento Valley or Sierra Foothills, or Contra Costa, Solano, San Joaquin, or Napa Counties. This position will require occasional travel to client sites in the areas where we work. As such, we do not require employees to work in our Sacramento office regularly if they are not in the field. Though our office, perched along the scenic Sacramento River levee in Sacramento’s South Natomas neighborhood, is a great place to work from and collaborate with other team members!

Types of projects and habitats the Sacramento Valley team works on

• Developing watershed assessments and natural resource management plans that balance working use of open space with ecological conservation and ecosystem benefits
• Implementing the conservation programs of regional Habitat Conservation Plans and other large-scale habitat conservation programs
• Working with large private landowners to develop mitigation and conservation banks
• Developing integrated invasive plant management programs
• Supporting renewable energy project developing and operations in the Central Valley
• Assessing meadows and watersheds in the Sierra Nevada and designing restoration projects to improve ecological functions
• Leading survey, population monitoring, and permitting projects involving Swainson’s hawks, burrowing owls, California red-legged frogs, California tiger salamanders, salmonids, native bumble bees, and vernal pool branchiopods

Competencies, skills, and experience

We aim to hire team members who strive for excellence in their everyday work and who are interested in continually improving their scientific knowledge and collaborating with experts in other fields. In addition to having a degree in biology, ecology, or related fields, the ideal candidate should have a combination of some or all of the following:

• 1-5 years of demonstrated field experience
• Specialized training in at least one ecological domain (such as plant, grassland, rangeland, restoration, or wildlife)
• Experience and/or training in the ecology and management of rangelands in California or related fields (e.g., grassland ecology, invasive plant management, forestry with an emphasis of ecosystem management)
• Master’s degree fields noted above: candidates without a Master’s will be considered with demonstrated training in biological sciences, natural resources management, or rangeland management
• Highly organized
• Strong writing aptitude
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills
• A drive to deepen your ecological knowledge and experience
• Licensure as a California Certified Rangeland Manager, or ability to become certified within two years following hire (ideal, but not required)

A few other nitty gritty details

This position requires the future employee to:

• Follow best practices for field safety
• Hold a valid driver’s license with no major traffic violations or multiple minor violations
• Walk over varied terrain for surveys and work in inclement weather

How to apply

Even if you don’t meet all the qualifications above, we welcome your application so we can learn more about you! To start the process, please submit your resume and a cover letter through our applicant portal. In your cover letter please tell us:

• about your interests in habitat conservation and resource management, or related experience
• what you hope to get from your next position
• whatever else you’d like to share that isn’t obvious from your resume

Ultimately, we’ll ask candidates who move forward in the process for references and academic transcripts and potentially writing samples, but if you don’t have them handy now, they can be submitted later.

Please combine your cover letter and resume into one file and apply here.