Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Wildlife Coordinator

🎯 Role Definition

The Wildlife Coordinator is a field-oriented conservation professional responsible for planning, executing, and reporting wildlife and habitat monitoring, restoration, and mitigation projects. This role combines technical field skills (population surveys, capture and telemetry, water/soil sampling), data management and analysis (GIS, databases, R/Python), regulatory compliance (permits, ESA consultations), budget/grant administration, and community/stakeholder coordination. The ideal candidate balances hands-on field leadership with strong written communication to produce actionable reports, grant deliverables, and outreach materials that drive conservation outcomes.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Field Technician, Wildlife Biology or Ecology
Natural Resources Technician or Park Ranger
Research Assistant in Ecology, Fisheries, or Wildlife Labs

Advancement To:

Senior Wildlife Coordinator / Program Manager
Conservation Project Manager or Habitat Restoration Manager
Policy Advisor, Species Recovery Coordinator, or Director of Field Operations

Lateral Moves:

GIS Analyst (Ecology-focused)
Permitting & Compliance Specialist
Environmental Education or Outreach Manager

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Develop, implement, and continuously refine multi-year wildlife monitoring programs to track population trends, habitat use, reproduction, and survival, ensuring protocols meet agency standards and peer-reviewed methodologies.
Plan and coordinate field surveys (point counts, transects, camera trapping, acoustic monitoring, eDNA, mist-netting) including site selection, scheduling, QA/QC, field logistics, and standardized data collection to support population and occupancy modeling.
Oversee capture, handling, marking, and tagging operations for vertebrate species (VHF/GPS tags, PIT tags, bands), maintain SOPs for animal welfare and anesthesia, supervise post-release monitoring, and document chain-of-custody records.
Design and lead habitat restoration and enhancement projects (native seeding, invasive species removal, riparian revegetation, erosion control) from design through contractor coordination, implementation, and monitoring of restoration success.
Prepare, submit, and manage permits and regulatory compliance packages (local, state, federal; ESA consultations; NEPA input), liaise with regulatory agencies, and ensure all field activities meet permit conditions and mitigation commitments.
Recruit, train, supervise, and evaluate field crews, seasonal technicians, and volunteers; create training curricula and safety briefings focused on survey protocols, species identification, data entry, and first aid.
Build and maintain comprehensive data management systems (relational databases, ArcGIS/QGIS mapping, cloud storage, metadata) to store, validate, and prepare datasets for analysis and public reporting.
Conduct quantitative analyses of ecological data using R, Python, or other statistical software to generate population estimates, habitat associations, occupancy/ detection models, trend analyses, and to inform adaptive management.
Produce timely, high-quality technical reports, environmental assessments, grant reports, and peer-review-ready summaries that clearly communicate methods, results, and management recommendations to partners and stakeholders.
Create and manage project budgets, track expenditures, procure field equipment (boats, ATVs, telemetry gear, remote cameras, drones), and maintain equipment inventories and maintenance schedules for safe, reliable field operations.
Coordinate interdisciplinary teams and partnerships with federal, state, tribal, municipal agencies, NGOs, private landowners, and academic partners to align monitoring and restoration goals and leverage resources.
Lead public outreach and education initiatives, design interpretive materials, facilitate community science programs, represent the organization at public meetings, and translate technical findings for non-technical audiences.
Develop and implement field safety plans, supervise compliance with health and safety protocols (WVAs, HAZMAT, heat-stress policies), maintain incident reporting, and ensure crews are trained in wilderness first aid and emergency response procedures.
Manage remote-sensing and spatial analyses to map critical habitat, model habitat suitability and connectivity, and assess land-use change impacts on focal species and corridors.
Oversee laboratory sample workflows (genetic samples, diet/stable isotope analyses, contaminant testing), maintain chain-of-custody, coordinate with contract labs, and ensure quality control for lab-derived data.
Implement adaptive management processes by integrating monitoring results into prioritized conservation actions and updating management plans and targets based on evidence.
Lead grant proposal development and manage awarded funds, including reporting deliverables, fiscal tracking, subcontracts, and coordinating with finance and grants administration teams.
Track and document permit conditions, mitigation measures, and monitoring compliance for infrastructure or development projects; prepare compliance reports for clients and regulators.
Coordinate responses to wildlife incidents (stranding, human-wildlife conflict, disease outbreaks), serve as liaison to wildlife rehabilitators and veterinarians, and prepare incident summaries and recommendations.
Maintain and curate species and monitoring databases, contribute data to state/federal reporting systems, and support conservation assessments and recovery planning efforts (PVA inputs, recovery criteria tracking).
Supervise use of field vehicles, boats, ATVs, drones, and specialized capture gear, ensuring operators are trained, certified where required, and that safety and maintenance protocols are followed.
Mentor early-career staff and volunteers, facilitate professional development opportunities, conduct performance reviews, and cultivate an inclusive team culture focused on scientific rigor and conservation outcomes.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc GIS, mapping, and data visualization requests for internal teams and external partners to inform planning, permitting, and outreach.
Assist leadership with strategic planning, workplan development, and grant scoping to align monitoring deliverables with organizational priorities.
Contribute to data strategy, metadata standards, and documentation to enable reproducible analyses and efficient data sharing across projects and partners.
Participate in cross-functional meetings and collaborative proposals, representing field capabilities, constraints, and data needs during project scoping and budgeting.
Provide subject-matter input to communications teams for press releases, web content, and social media that highlight project milestones, species status updates, and volunteer opportunities.
Maintain up-to-date familiarity with new survey technologies (automated recording units, eDNA workflows, drone photogrammetry) and pilot-test innovations appropriate for monitoring needs.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Field survey design and implementation: point counts, transects, camera trapping, acoustic monitoring, mist-netting, eDNA sampling.
Wildlife capture, handling, marking and telemetry (VHF/GPS/PIT tag deployment) with documented animal welfare and anesthesia protocols.
Regulatory permitting and compliance: state/federal permits, ESA coordination, NEPA input, mitigation monitoring.
GIS and spatial analysis: ArcGIS Pro, QGIS, geoprocessing, habitat suitability and connectivity modeling.
Data management and databases: relational databases, Excel best practices, data QA/QC, metadata standards.
Quantitative analysis and scripting: R or Python for statistical modeling, occupancy, abundance estimation, and data visualization.
Grant writing and grant management: proposal development, budget creation, deliverable tracking, and fund reporting.
Field safety and emergency planning: wilderness first aid, CPR, field safety plan development, HAZWOPER familiarity if applicable.
Equipment operation and maintenance: small boats, ATVs/UTVs, drones (Part 107 preferred), telemetry receivers, remote cameras.
Laboratory sample management: chain-of-custody, sample preservation and shipping, coordination with diagnostic and genetic labs.
Report writing and technical communication: environmental assessments, monitoring reports, and technical memos tailored to agencies and stakeholders.

Soft Skills

Clear, persuasive written and verbal communication for technical and public audiences.
Leadership and crew management: coaching, scheduling, conflict resolution, performance feedback.
Stakeholder engagement and diplomacy: building trust with agencies, landowners, tribal partners, and NGOs.
Problem-solving and adaptability in remote, variable, or rapidly changing field conditions.
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail for managing multiple projects and datasets.
Team collaboration and interdisciplinary coordination across science, operations, and communications.
Time management and prioritization to meet field seasons, permit deadlines, and grant reporting.
Cultural sensitivity and community-oriented outreach skills for respectful engagement with diverse stakeholders.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in Wildlife Biology, Ecology, Natural Resources, Environmental Science, Fisheries, or closely related field.

Preferred Education:

Master's degree (M.S.) in Wildlife Ecology, Conservation Biology, or related discipline; Ph.D. preferred for senior or research-focused coordinator roles.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Wildlife Biology / Wildlife Ecology
Conservation Biology / Restoration Ecology
Natural Resource Management
Fisheries Science
Environmental Science / Ecology
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 2–5 years of progressively responsible field experience in wildlife monitoring, habitat restoration, or related conservation projects.

Preferred: 5+ years of experience including demonstrated supervisory responsibility, permit management, telemetry/capture experience, grant management, and a record of producing technical reports and successful partnerships with regulatory agencies.