Employment opportunity with the RSPB updating Red List texts for albatrosses and petrels (and other seabirds)

White-capped Albatross, photograph by Graham Parker

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) in the UK is seeking a highly-motivated individual with energy, enthusiasm and initiative to update global summaries of the population status and threats to seabird species worldwide.  The position will work closely with both the BirdLife International Marine Programme, hosted by RSPB, and with the BirdLife Global Species Officer (Red List Coordination).

Specifically, the post will:

Assess the albatross and petrel IUCN Red List changes that could be expected in the future if current BirdLife Marine Programme work to reduce seabird bycatch is successful, and to identify the priority population monitoring gaps that must be filled in order to measure success.

For penguins and albatrosses, support the IUCN Penguin Specialist Group and the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) to collate relevant data (including on distribution, population status, trends, and threats and actions) data to feed into the 2016 IUCN Red List update, and use these data to update the relevant BirdLife Species Fact Sheets.

For the 35 gadfly petrels Pterodroma spp., collate relevant data (including on distribution, population, trends, threats and actions) to feed into the 2016 IUCN Red List update, and use these data to update the relevant BirdLife Species Fact Sheets.

For the 25 alcid species, collate relevant data (including on distribution, population, trends, threats and actions) to feed into the 2016 IUCN Red List update, and use these data to update the relevant BirdLife Species Fact Sheets.

For other seabirds, collate relevant data (including on distribution, population, trends, threats and actions) to feed into the 2016 IUCN Red List update, and use these data to update the relevant BirdLife Species Fact Sheets, following an agreed sequence of priorities to be determined.

Update seabird species range maps using ArcGIS, referring to seabird tracking data and other sources to revise distributional limits and seasonality coding where appropriate.

The successful candidate will have an excellent attention to detail, understand the IUCN Red List criteria and their application, and have a broad knowledge of seabirds, marine ecology and conservation.

The post is for a full-time nine-month contract.  Application closing date is 11 February.

Read more here.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 30 January 2016