=20 Conservation and Land Management Mentoring Program
=20 Five paid botany fellowship positions are available for recent graduates.=20 =20 Compensation is $750 per two week pay period. =20 The fellowships are 5 months in length.=20 =20 Location: California Desert BLM District Office, Moreno Valley =20 Job Description: 1. Species familiarity: Knowledge of plant families, genera, and species is most important for these positions. Introduction to desert plant species will be provided by the mentor, but autonomy in plant identification in the field will be essential, since the mentor will not be able to accompany interns at all times. Other species (e.g. bird, reptile) familiarity will be beneficial, but is not required. Many non-plant sensitive and listed species occur in the project areas. Three-fifths of the fellowship will be seed collection for restoration and conservation (depending on precipitation). In the event spring blooms are less than normal, alternative projects will be available and could include some lizard or tortoise monitoring. =20 2. Fieldwork experience: Basic seed collection experience is preferred, but not required. Candidates with botanical knowledge and experience will be easy to train on seed collection techniques, locating seed sources, estimating probable seed viability, and timing of species flowering and subsequent seeding. Vegetation monitoring will include combinations of transect, quadrat, and point-line intersect protocols. Experience in or knowledge of these techniques is strongly desired. In addition to these two main activities, opportunities may arise for invasive species eradication experimental plots. In this case, involvement will depend on fellows' experience, desire, and any other constraints. The spring weather in the desert can be very cold and extremely windy, often causing sleepless nights and difficult work days. The end of fellowship may be extremely hot and could reach temperatures between 110 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit. =20 3. Geographic Information Systems: GPS (Global Positioning System) dataloggers will be used for navigation and data collection. Any previous GPS experience is preferred, but not required. Mentor will provide fellows with basic GPS training. GIS is above and beyond the requirements for these positions, but for an fellow with a desire to work in GIS, the opportunity exists within the fellowship.=20 =20 =20 Background: The Seeds of Success (SOS) program operates through the Plant Conservation Alliance, an interagency program in which BLM and Chicago Botanic Garden (CBG) participates. The SOS program serves two purposes. SOS is the United States' contribution to the Royal Botanic Garden KEW (England) Millennium Seed Bank project under which seed from approximately 10% of the world's flora are to be collected for long-term germplasm storage and conservation research. Secondly, approximately half of the seed collected by BLM is returned for storage in the U.S. to support development of plant materials for restoration and conservation purposes by BLM and other entities. =20 =20 Opportunities exist to continue work overseas (Australia and/or UK) in seed biology or other botany related fields. In addition, a Masters program in Plant Biology and Conservation with Northwestern University is also available for suitably qualified post fellowship candidates. =20 To Apply: Send a Letter of Interest and Resume to Lara Jefferson [EMAIL PROTECTED] =20 =20 =20 =20