Job opportunity: White-tailed eagle project officer, Isle of Wight

Following the news that Natural England has approved the reintroduction of white-tailed eagles to the Isle of Wight as part of a conservation effort to re-establish a breeding population in southern England (here), the project team is now recruiting for a White-tailed eagle Project Officer.

Strangely, the post is only offered as a ‘Fixed Term Appointment for 2 years with the possibility of extension or permanency but no guarantee’ whereas the proposed reintroduction is planned to cover a five-year period. Nevertheless, it’s a fantastic opportunity to be part of an exciting conservation initiative and to work with a great team of conservationists and of course an incredible species.

JOB SPECIFICATION

Location: Isle of Wight

Salary: £25,673 – £28,428

Hours: 37hr/week, full time, flexible working

Job background: South England Forest District manages some 46,000 hectares of the public forest estate across West Sussex, Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Dorset & South Wiltshire. Much of the land is of high importance for nature conservation, supporting some 29,000 hectares (ha) deemed to be of national importance for wildlife of which approximately 28,000 ha are also designated as being of international importance for biodiversity as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Ramsar sites. The majority of the land managed by the District is also within areas designated for their landscape value, including 4,000 ha within AONBs and 31,500 ha across two National Parks.

The White-tailed Eagle project is a partnership with the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, to reintroduce this species back to the south coast of England. The project has a Natural England licence to release birds over a 5 year programme, starting June 2019.

Job description: To deliver the reintroduction project on the Isle of Wight. The Project Officer will work closely with Forestry England’s ecology team and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation to carry out a successful reintroduction programme with good monitoring and close liaison with our stakeholders and the wider public.

Key work areas: The post holder will develop a volunteer network to help deliver the reintroduction process, including feeding of the birds and monitoring post release.

• Oversee information dissemination via a project website, social media and a programme of guided walks and talks.
• Develop information around how and where to see the birds, including developing interpretation material for the project.
• The monitoring and feeding of juvenile birds after their arrival on the Isle of Wight.
• Post release monitoring will involve close observation of the birds in the field and the use of both radio and satellite tracking.
• The key person liaising with stakeholders both on the Isle of Wight and on the mainland to ensure the success of the project.
• The first point of contact for any concerns raised by the local landowners and organisations, with support from Forestry England ecology team and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation.
• Be local to the Isle of Wight so that they can be on hand during the period when the birds are in cages at the release location and during post-release feeding.
• Work with local enterprises looking to add value to the project.
• Support the Bird Aware project in the Solent.

Essential experience:

• Sound knowledge and understanding of birds and wider ecology.
• Experience working with local stakeholder groups, including: farmers; landowners; non-governmental organisations; charities; local government.
• Experience working with the public.
• An effective communicator, both written and verbally.
• Fieldwork experience of monitoring birds, particularly raptors
• Experience engaging with volunteers, volunteer recruitment and management.
• Competent in IT – Microsoft Office, website content and social media.
• Current resident of the Isle of Wight or prepared to relocate.

Desirable experience:

• Practical experience of species reintroduction projects.
• Sound knowledge of the application of environmental legislation to project planning and delivery in the context of species reintroductions.
• Experience developing a suite of interpretation for a project.
• Experience in monitoring using satellite tagging.

Closing date: 1 May 2019

Interview date: 14 May 2019

For further details and how to apply, please see here