Assistant Staff Biologist- Herpetology

Do you thrive in the pursuit of ensuring excellence in environmental consulting services for your clients? SWCA Environmental Consultants is expanding their team and looking for dynamic individuals who are following their passion in delivering the highest-quality project work.

SWCA’s Austin Office natural resources team seeks an Assistant Staff Biologist – Herpetology to support our project work related to the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard (DSL). The project work would include visual encounter surveys, habitat evaluations, pitfall trap surveys, and monitoring for the DSL during construction activities. Herpetological field experience is required for this position. Our Austin office offers a unique work environment and specializes in natural resources and planning and there would be opportunities to support other projects that require natural resource surveys, as needed. The successful candidate may be responsible for leading natural resource field crews in conducting biological surveys.

This role will be 100% travel/field based. We hope to mobilize staff to the field during March 2026. This is an hourly, temporary position, with a minimum of 40-hours per week, non-exempt position based in our Austin, Texas office. Highly qualified remote (=distributed) employees may be considered. There is potential for this role to convert to a regular status position (with benefits) depending upon a number of factors, including individual performance, the availability of related client work, and other factors.

What you will accomplish

• Monitor DSL activities during construction to ensure that environmental protocols are being followed.
• Assist with a variety of natural resources field studies including wildlife surveys and habitat assessments, vegetation surveys, and wetland delineations.
• Record data on tablets using ESRI applications such as Field Maps, Survey123, and similar formats.
• Use topographic maps, aerial photographs, GPS units, ESRI ArcGIS, and other maps and tools to determine exact locations of project areas, habitat types, and associated landforms.
• Photograph and record appropriate habitat, species, and landforms.
• Operate SWCA vehicles. Ability to drive a 4-wheel drive vehicle on rugged, backcountry roads.
• Assist project managers in data organization, interpretation, and report preparation as needed.
• Adhere to SWCA’s safety procedures and standards of scientific and professional ethics. This includes adherence to SWCA and client safety policies and procedures.

For assistant staff biologist positions, depending upon project, an element of your job may be to independently supervise a biological survey crew in the field. This includes:

• Independently assigning and directing the activities of others on behalf of SWCA, often in remote areas without immediate guidance from senior managers, to ensure quality and on-time delivery;
• Serving as a conduit of communication between employees, project managers, contractors, and clients to maintain schedule and implementation of project responsibilities;
• Employees understand their responsibilities and delegated tasks and being held accountable if crew members under your supervision are not performing their activities correctly, productively, and safely; and
• Monitoring team productivity and providing timely performance feedback, including deciding when disciplinary action is necessary and delivering discipline.

Experience and qualifications for success

• Minimum of B.A. or B.S. in Biology, Ecology, Environmental Science, or related field experience
• A minimum of 1 year of field experience working in herpetology
• Suitable candidates should have experience with accurate data collection procedures, and data entry QA/QC
• The ability to conduct fieldwork for long hours, sometimes in inclement weather, rugged terrain, and at high altitudes, is required; the ability to carry equipment and supplies weighing up to 40 pounds is required.
• Familiarity with Esri products is a plus – Esri FieldMaps, Survey123, and QuickCapture on tablet devices.
• Ability to research and prepare technical documents
• Applicants must have valid driver’s license and be able to meet SWCA’s driver requirements.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard in the field.
• Experience safely handling amphibians and reptiles, including snakes.
• Experience working as a construction monitor is a plus.

SWCA Environmental Consultants is a growing employee-owned firm, providing a full-spectrum of environmental services. With offices across the United States, SWCA is one of the largest environmental compliance firms and ranks among Engineering News-Record’s Top 200 Environmental Firms.

We work to support our client’s needs across multiple service areas including transmission, renewable generation, transmission, oil & gas, and other sectors. The position requires the ability to work long hours in harsh conditions and be on the road for several days or weeks at a time.

SWCA is committed to salary equity and salary transparency for all its employees. In alignment with this commitment, SWCA posts good faith pay ranges on all its advertised job postings to promote pay equity and transparency.

An employee in this Austin office-based position can expect a rate of $22.39 to $28.94/hour. Actual pay within this range may depend on experience, qualifications, geographic location, client requirements where applicable, and other factors permitted by law.