Grasslands Coordinating Wildlife Biologist

In partnership with the USDA - Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the Arkansas Quail Forever Grasslands CWB – Monitoring Coordinator will coordinate and conduct monitoring and evaluation efforts on WLFW, RCPP, EQIP, CSP and related USDA wildlife programs to document the effectiveness of USDA conservation practices on pollinators, quail, grassland songbirds, and native grassland plant communities during the spring, summer, and fall. This position will be largely focused on in-the-field data collection, protocol development, data entry and preliminary analysis, and generating written reports. A key responsibility of this position will be to implement a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation protocol to document the success of applicable program work to increase quail and pollinator habitat and populations. The Monitoring Coordinator will work with local USDA service centers through the WLFW, RCPP, EQIP, CSP and other USDA conservation programs to assess and communicate working grassland, savanna, and open woodland recovery goals to reverse declines in wildlife populations associated with these habitats. This coordinator will also help lead Arkansas in the WLFW Outcomes Assessment monitoring effort occurring at a multi-state scale. The coordinator will work alongside Quail Forever Farm Bill Biologists and partner agencies to promote, coordinate and implement conservation provisions of the Federal Farm Bill on private lands. General duties will include all aspects of project site monitoring for outcomes, farm bill program effectiveness evaluation, program promotion/outreach, and report writing. Currently, this position is not a supervisory position. However, this position may supervise a WLFW Outcomes Assessment survey technician if necessary.

· Work with NRCS and Partners to continue and improve upon a Bobwhite Quail and Pollinator Habitat monitoring program to document program effectiveness and results.

· Continue NRCS Effectiveness Monitoring efforts on USDA-funded wildlife habitat projects, to include Spring Breeding Bird Surveys, Fall Quail Covey Counts, Vegetation and Pollinator Transect Monitoring, and Soil Infiltration.

· Promote and Implement Working Lands For Wildlife Outcomes Assessment Monitoring working in conjunction with a region-wide WLFW monitoring protocol using Autonomous Recording Units and gridded vegetation monitoring on WLFW-specific projects. This assessment is a NRCS/QF/University of Georgia partnership.

· Work alongside AGFC, NRCS, and other partnering agencies to determine and/or develop appropriate monitoring databases, and to compare data collected on public land monitoring efforts.

· Work with Arkansas NRCS and ARS at the USDA Plant Materials Center on joint research projects.

· Generate written reports and presentations to USDA NRCS on monitoring efforts and trends based on data collected from surveys and protocols, with an emphasis on USDA program and practice implementation outcomes.

· Work closely with Quail Forever and AGFC staff to streamline monitoring efforts on USDA funded projects on private lands, and communicate directly with private landowners on the intent, importance, and overall objectives of effectiveness monitoring.