To manage the long-term monitoring and targeted research projects on higher predators (seals, albatrosses, penguins and petrels) at Bird Island.
This includes management of Bird Island:
- including infrastructure, databases, purchasing, equipment, development of new technologies, public outreach, permits, risk assessment, liaison with Operations, Corporate Services, Science etc.
- recruiting, directing and supporting the 6 zoological field assistants; managing the bird ringing and tracking programmes.
- managing and developing the long-term monitoring and demography databases.
- personal scientific research as lead and in support of other members of Ecosystems and external collaborators.
- applying for external grants as PI or Co-I.
- publishing papers as lead or co-author in peer-reviewed journals.
The post holder will also be required to provide specialist support across the Ecosystems Team and other science teams in BAS.
Duties
Bird Island Science Management
- Manage the science infrastructure at Bird Island.
- BAS management committees and meetings relating to Bird Island.
- Permit applications and reports (PEA, South Georgia RAP, AWERB).
- Lead annual recruitment of new Bird Island Zoological Field Assistants.
- Manage training of the Bird Island Zoological Field Assistants.
- Manage the Bird Island Zoological Field Assistants in the field.
- Manage the bird ringing programmes.
- Manage and develop the predator demography databases and data-entry systems.
- Ecosystems representative on NPRAM.
- Public outreach (including web pages) for the long-term predator monitoring programmes.
Scientific Research
- Lead targeted research projects generating primary science outputs in seabird and marine mammal research.
- Deliver a key piece of software or key dataset or publish on average at least one first-author paper per year in a high-quality journal.
- Contribute on average to two or more papers as co-author per year.
- Develop grant applications (including NERC standard grants or equivalent as PI or Co-I) to undertake innovative predator research, with a strong focus on Bird Island.
- Generate proposals for development of innovative technical systems and capital equipment bids for predator research.
- Code bespoke extracts from the long-term demography and tracking databases for BAS and external collaborators.
- Manage the Predators Argos tracking programs.
- Provide specialist IT, data science, analysis and support to the Predators team, PhD students and Polar Data Centre.
- Maintain/build web pages and associated data feeds for tracking studies.
Skills, Qualifications and Experience
- Experience of research on ecology of birds or mammals.
- Experience of publishing in high quality academic journals.
- Knowledge of marine ecosystems.
- Good first degree or Masters in biological or environmental sciences.
- PhD in biology, ecology, marine science or related field.
- Proven experience of managing and querying relational databases.
- Demonstrable ability to report, analyse and interpret ecological data.
- Proficient in R, MS Office.
- Experience of managing staff, and of planning and management of research programmes and budgets.
- Proficient in written and spoken English.
- Ability to make effective decisions both independently and by consensus.
- Demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a team.
- Good interpersonal skills required for engagement with scientists, collaborators, operations, public and other stakeholders.
- British Trust for Ornithology ringing permit (C or full A).
- Experience of predator research on remote Antarctic/sub-Antarctic islands.
- Expertise on higher predators or predator-prey interactions in marine ecosystems.
- Experience of securing funding for research or associated infrastructure.
- Experience of analysing tracking data.
- Knowledge of SQL or other programming languages; ARGOS data management; web page development; GIS.
- Experience of recruiting staff; remote management of staff.
- Experience of working with multiple stakeholders.
The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.
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