Bat Monitoring Assistant - AmeriCorps

• Location Conservation Legacy,Boulder City, NV, 89005,United States
• Job Category Individual Placement, Ameri Corps
• Industry Bat, Field Ecology, Monitoring
• Employee Type Ameri Corps

• Email (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below).

Site

Location:

Mojave Desert I&M Network Office

Boulder City, NV 89005

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants who submit applications by October 2, 2026. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Terms of Service:

Ideal

Start Date:

January 11, 2027

End Date:
July 9, 2027

Ameri Corps Slot Classification: 900 hours, 26 weeks

Purpose:

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards), a program of Conservation Legacy, provides individuals with Ameri Corps service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants serve with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits to provide institutional capacity, develop community relationships, and support ecosystem health. Stewards in partnership with the NPS Mojave Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network (MOJN) will host a Bat Monitoring Assistant.

The Bat Monitoring Assistant is an Ameri Corps position that will assist in collecting and managing data about bats within the parks of the Mojave Desert Network (MOJN). The MOJN is one of 32 Monitoring Networks across the NPS, using information gathered for planning, research, education, and to help guide decisions related to park management. For more information see their website: https://.htm

This position will serve the public by supporting long term monitoring of bats and ensuring that data is collected using sound science and making that data available to the public. This position helps support the Gold Standard of Science Executive Order (EO 14303). Some bat species in the eastern United States have been declining due to White-Nose Syndrome (WNS) for almost 20 years.

The fungus responsible for WNS has now spread across most of the country and has recently been detected within the Mojave Desert. Less is known about the impact of WNS within the western US, so monitoring of populations is essential in better identifying which species may be impacted and provide park managers with the most up to date information when making management decisions.

The purpose of this position is to assist the bat monitoring crew lead with implementation of the MOJN bat monitoring plan for the 2027 season which includes passive acoustic monitoring following a modified version of NABat as well as WNS surveillance sampling which includes capturing bats to take swab samples to detect the presence of the fungus that causes WNS. This position is primarily focused on field data collection, although office projects will also be required.

Regular overnight travel and “car” camping will occur (government vehicles and most camping equipment will be provided), often in backcountry locations with no amenities. Long drives on highways and unimproved dirt roads are often necessary to get to remote sites.

Description of Duties:

• Conducting capture surveys for bats to sample them for the presence of the fungus that causes WNS (training will be provided).
• Conducting acoustic monitoring following the North American Bat Monitoring Program protocol with some slight modifications (training will be provided) which includes deploying bat detectors at specified monitoring sites.
• Collecting data using Survey
  123 and Field Maps with tablets in the field.
• Walking up to 10 miles per day over uneven terrain;
• Hiking with backpacks that may weigh 30+ pounds;
• Conducting quality analysis/quality control for all data collected, either in the field or in the office; and
• Collaborating with MOJN staff in project planning, oversight of field…