/THE*OUTSIDE*IS IN US ALL./ Please remember to attach the required documents listed in this announcement. * Resume * Cover Letter Applications missing the requested documents will be considered incomplete and may not progress further in the process. Documents not requested will not be considered in the recruitment process. The State Application is not a substitute for a Resume. This position closes at 11:59 PM Mountain Time on February 16, 2025. You must apply through the State of Montana Career site. *Special Information:* Identity of applicants who become finalists may be releases to the public if the Department deems it necessary. Employees who exceed 1,040 hours in a calendar year are also provided health, dental and life insurance. Other benefits include retirement, paid vacation, sick and holidays. This position may be covered by a VEBA (Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association). A successful applicant will be subject to a background investigation. Women and minorities are under-represented in this job category and are encouraged to apply. *Job Overview:* As a wildlife research biologist at FWP, you will be expected to demonstrate exceptional leadership skills and foster collaborative team dynamics to drive innovative research, facilitate cross-disciplinary partnerships, and advance our collective understanding of wildlife management. Priority research topics and wildlife taxa this position will focus on will change through time but will always be applied, integrated with wildlife management programs, and conducted in close collaboration with wildlife and habitat managers. This position involves working closely with university faculty and students, including serving on graduate student committees, as well as collaborating with federal land managers. This position supervises 3 permanent wildlife research technicians, as well as multiple temporary or seasonal positions that vary depending on project definitions and funding. The current primary focus of this position is coordinating a large and complex project related to estimating bottom-up and top-down drivers of elk populations and distribution in northwestern Montana and translating findings into predictive tools for elk management. This project involves multiple FWP staff, University of Montana faculty, and graduate students. This position is also closely involved with research and analysis related to brucellosis in elk, and an initial task will be using existing data from 30 elk herds across Montana to update definitions of public land elk security habitat in a quantitative, empirical manner. The position will be intimately involved in defining future research directions, working closely with wildlife managers and administrators. Success in this position involves a combination of interpersonal, supervisory, field work, analysis, presentation, and writing skills. This is a statewide position. The base location of this position is flexible but the FWP regional office in Bozeman is preferred. Other FWP regional offices (located in Kalispell, Missoula, Great Falls, Billings, Glasgow, or Miles City) might also work, depending on office space, and office space is available at FWP headquarters in Helena. Fieldwork will occur in different areas of the state that will change through time as projects are completed and new priorities emerge. Fieldwork will require travel and extended stays in the vicinity of projects away from the base office. * * *Job Duties:* * Leads and develops high-performing research teams through strategic collaboration, mentorship, and effective communication to advance wildlife research objectives and scientific innovation. * Conceptualize, design, coordinate, and implement multiple research projects in multiple regions of Montana that are focused on priority wildlife issues. This will involve adherence to the scientific method and the standard scientific process from project initiation to publication of products and disseminating results. This will involve close collaboration with statewide and regional FWP staff as well as other agencies and collaborators. This will involve technical competency, intellectual curiosity, productivity, and the ability to establish trust with other people and work well as a team leader and team member. * Serve as a technical expert and representative for Montana FWP in the arena of wildlife science in which research projects are focused, and in general on modern wildlife science, management and conservation strategies and techniques, data management, and advanced statistical data analyses. This will involve close professional communication and collaboration with university scientists, other agency researchers, and other Research Unit staff. * Maintain and enhance professional standing and competency as a research wildlife biologist in Montana and nationally. * Perform special assignments for the Directors Office and/ or Wildlife Division, including conducting special projects, participating in special meetings, providing technical counsel, ensuring appropriate scientific input to specific issues, and completing projects for other Divisions. *Minimum Qualifications (Education and Experience):* The knowledge, skills, and abilities of this position are normally attained through a combination of education and experience equivalent to a master’s degree in Fish and Wildlife Management, Wildlife Biology, Disease Ecology, Range Management, Zoology or Biology, including completion of a field research project presented in a successfully defended thesis. Other combinations of education and experience will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Equivalent experience is defined as five (5) years of progressively responsible experience as a wildlife biologist or senior wildlife technician that includes the examples of: 1. Literature review and development of a problem statement and/or hypothesis for a particular issue. 2. Development of a detailed study plan or sampling protocol for a field-oriented project based on the above-noted hypothesis. 3. Data collection and the effective management of data with an appropriate application. 4. Interpretation and analysis of data, including a quantitative assessment of that information. 5. Completion of a final report in a peer-reviewed publication or a publication comparable to a refereed journal. 6. If appropriate to the project, formulation of any recommended changes in management prescriptions and/or actions. 7. Oral presentation on results of investigation to agency staff or public audience. If you feel you meet the equivalent experience, please provide a supplemental document in your application that indicates your experience level relative to each point listed above. **Title:** *Wildlife Research Biologist* **Location:** *Bozeman* **Requisition ID:** *25140177* **Other Locations:** *Billings, Missoula, Miles City, Helena, Kalispell, Glasgow, Great Falls*