Fisheries Laboratory Technician

Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission • Seattle, WA

13h • Onsite

About The Position

Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission is recruiting candidates to fill the
Fisheries Laboratory Technician position located at the AFSC Age and Growth Lab
based in Seattle, Washington.

Fisheries Technicians perform duties related to the protection, preservation,
propagation, and sampling of fish species and the preservation or enhancement of
their habitat.  They use knowledge of procedural requirements and processes to
support the technical work of their unit.  They provide practical technical
support to research, operations, or program administration efforts.

Conduct laboratory procedures to process fish hard structures such as vertebrae,
fin rays, and otoliths for determining the age of fish. Laboratory tasks will
include dissection of fish to remove hard structures, thin sectioning hard
structures and preparing using other techniques for microscopic examination to
determine age of fish based on standard age assignment criteria. Using of other
laboratory equipment such as near infrared spectrometer to scan hard structures
for spectral data. This position does not require supervisory or management
duties. Position requires successful completion of a Bachelors degree in biology
or environmental science.

Requirements

• fish ageing (scale, otholith, other)
• compile and collect neat and accurate data
• Candidates must present a 4-year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with a major or at least 24 semester hours of coursework in any combination of scientific or technical courses.
• As indicated in the Position/Project Specifics, this position requires successful completion of a Bachelors degree in biology or environmental science.

Nice To Haves

• literature search/review
• fish species ID skills
• using fish keys
• specific software skills (spreadsheet, word processing, database, GIS, statistical)
• oral communication skills
• written communication skills

Responsibilities

• Make standardized observations such as species identification, length, weight, behavior, growth, survival, reproductive condition, and/or signs of parasites, diseases or pathogens, fin clips or tags.
• Collect and organize biological and habitat samples and collections (such as scales, otoliths, ageing structures, other tissues, water quality, etc.).
• Summarize and input biological or habitat data on field forms, electronic data loggers, and/or desktop computers. May assist with preliminary data summaries and analyses, technical report writing, or database management.
• Perform precision ageing of various fish species in a laboratory setting. Record age and growth data in the appropriate format.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level