Summary

You will serve as a SUPERVISORY FISH & WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST with US Fish and Wildlife Service.

You will supervise ~8-10 biologists working across multiple Florida Ecological Services sub-offices and programs and provide leadership, supervision, technical expertise, and program oversight for activities involving endangered species, habitat conservation, federal projects, environmental contaminants, and the protection and restoration of fish and wildlife resources

Duties

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Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following:

• Serves as a supervisor, exercising the full range of supervisory and managerial duties and responsibilities over 8-10 staff (some of whom may be located in other Florida offices), and addressing a complex and challenging workload across multiple Ecological Services program areas, including some or many of the following: Endangered Species (e.g., Classification, Recovery, Consultations), the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program (working with private landowners to voluntarily restore wildlife habitat), the Coastal Program (working with partners to restore and conserve coastal habitats on public and private lands), Environmental Contaminants (e.g., Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR), Florida's Air Force Partnership, and Conservation Planning Assistance (e.g., National Environmental Policy Act reviews, Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act projects and permitting under the Clean Water Act).
• Serves as the Office Manager in Panama City, Florida, overseeing general logistical operations of the office.
• Provides administrative, policy, and technical guidance and leadership and direction to subordinate staff on conducting field studies, developing species and habitat plans and consultations, implementing management and recovery plans, and developing and maintaining internal and external partnerships in the state and region.
• Coordinates and collaborates effectively with a dynamic leadership team across Florida Ecological Services, including a State Supervisor, Deputy State Supervisor, Division Managers (Environmental Review, Conservation Delivery, Classification and Recovery, Everglades Restoration, and Administration and Budget) and other supervisors within those Divisions. Provides scientific review and recommendations on actions and plans involving listed and at-risk species and habitat and provides written and oral briefings/presentations to state and regional leadership as needed.
• Provides technical and financial support to private landowners and other nonfederal landowners in the office's area of responsibility who want to improve fish and wildlife habitat on their properties.
• Represents the Service on internal and external committees, working groups, and other special groups as needed and is knowledgeable and skilled in relaying information on policy, planning, and management for assigned program areas.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.

This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

This is a supervisory position that may require completion of a supervisory probationary period.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 10/13/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.

For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience.

Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Basic Educational Requirement and Specialized Experience for the series to which you are applying.

Basic Educational Requirements: In addition to the specialized experience requirements for this position, you must meet at least one of the following:

A. Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. You must submit transcripts.

-OR-

B. Combination of education and experience: course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

To qualify for this position at the GS-13 grade level:

Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience includes 1) Managing or leading a staff of biological/natural resource professionals; 2) Evaluating species and habitat plans and developing collaborative solutions for resource management problems; 3) Coordinating with and advising Federal, State and local agencies, Tribes, non-governmental organizations, industry representatives, private landowners, and others to conserve fish, wildlife or plants; and 4) Mentoring lower-level employees on endangered species listing, recovery, or consultation; or habitat conservation, including providing oversight and guidance on complex and controversial conservation policy and technical issues. (Note: This experience must be clearly documented in your resume.) You must include hours per week worked.

Volunteer Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

This position has a mandatory education requirement.

You must submit a copy of your transcript(s). Transcripts must include your name, school name, grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, and date the degree was conferred, if applicable. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Non-submission may result in being rated not qualified for the position. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications

Additional information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.

Physical Demands:The work is usually sedentary, but requires good concentration, ability to handle the stress of numerous un-related activities in a short time period, limited heavy lifting, and other related physical demands. Travel to meetings or workshops (usually by commercial airlines and rented automobiles) may be required with limited forewarning. Projects/program investigations and field work could entail walking over rough and/or uneven terrain.

Work Environment: The work is usually performed in an office environment. The office is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. Temperature and weather extremes may be encountered in the performance of outdoor work such as a site visit; however, this is not a common occurrence.

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.