Bird Department and
Chough project - Student Placement
The Durrell Wildlife
Conservation Trust, registered as a charity in 1963, manages a worldwide
species recovery program.
Durrell’s headquarters is in Jersey and serves as a centre for breeding,
research, professional training and fund raising.
A limited number of
un-paid work experience places for students are available each year. On this
placement Students will spend 6 months with the Chough reintroduction Project
and 6 months at the wildlife park
working with the Bird Department. Students may have the opportunity to carry
out a research project.
Please note that any projects carried out must be approved by Durrell staff
before arrival. Placements are coordinated by the International Training
Centre. Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust is under no obligation to mentor
projects.
It is important to
note that the Trust cannot provide either funding or accommodation.
Placement students
must therefore be self-financing, and the costs of living in Jersey should be considered before
applying. Some students find part-time jobs to help support their placement.
Chough Project Placement
An exciting
opportunity has arisen for a student placement at Durrell, based in Jersey,
working on the red-billed chough
reintroduction project. This project is just one of many within Jersey’s “Birds
On The Edge” project (www.BirdsontheEdge.org) run in
collaboration with the National Trust for Jersey and States of Jersey
Department of the Environment.
Durrell houses a
captive collection of choughs at the Wildlife Park and at an off-site aviary
near Sorel Point. Juvenile
choughs bred in captivity will be released to the north coast of Jersey.
Following a trial release in 2013,
there are now sixteen choughs flying at liberty. All birds are intensively
monitored and managed
post-release. We aim to conduct several more soft releases over the next two
years.
The student
placement will assist the Field Manager in carrying out these activities. The
student will spend 6 months with
the project from September to March or March to September.
Choughs have been
absent from the Channel Islands for nearly a century and with the UK population in
serious decline this is an exciting opportunity to restore an enigmatic
species.
Duties may include:
Activities will be
focused around repeated soft releases, captive husbandry, radio-tracking and
recording basic behavioural data in the field. Training will be given in radio
tracking, habitat assessment and understanding chough behaviour.
The position will
require data entry using Microsoft Office and potentially GIS software.
Therefore, it is desirable that the successful candidate is competent in using
these packages. The student may also
be required to work onsite within the captive collection during periods of low
activity in the field. Potential tasks
include chick food provisioning, aviary maintenance and nest-camera monitoring.
This role will
involve representing Durrell and the Birds On The Edge project in the media and engaging with the
public. Therefore, good written and verbal communication skills are required.
Applicants should
have a full driving license and means of transport is desirable. A mileage
allowance is provided where appropriate. The release site is a 10 minute drive
from the Wildlife Park and not accessible by public transport. The applicant
should also be prepared to work weekends and Bank Holidays in a roster system
although this is negotiable.
Placement location
The student
placement will be based primarily at the chough release site at Sorel on the
north coast of Jersey. Post-release monitoring of the birds will require a
certain amount of travelling, mainly on foot, within the vicinity of the
release aviary.
However, as these
birds will be ‘free to roam’ there may be a need to travel further afield
during the release phase. The
project will also require the student to work within the captive collection at
Durrell.
Bird Department Placement
The student will be
involved in promoting the Trust's work in the captive breeding of endangered species by working
on the daily management of the animal collection under the direction of the Department Head or
the Deputy Head.
Students will gain
valuable insight into the husbandry of a wide variety of bird taxa. They will
get to see first hand how a busy bird department is run and get the chance to
work within a motivated, experienced team in a conservation-oriented organisation.
The student will spend 6 months with Durrell’s Bird department from September
to March or March to September.
Duties may include:
• Maintaining high
standards of cleanliness in all animal enclosures, public viewing areas and
“off view” facilities.
• Cleaning sheds
• Cleaning ponds
• Raking enclosures
• Cleaning public
areas in walk-through aviaries
• Changing substrate
in enclosures
• Washing up food
and drink bowls
• Preparing and
helping keepers distribute food to the animals, following the prescribed diets.
• Fruit chopping and
preparation of “dry mixes”,
• preparing food
dishes,
• maintaining the
insects kept for food
• preparing insect
cultures,
• feeding various
species/ routines (examples: flamingos, red-breasted geese, northern bald ibis, routine
including various softbill species)
• Ensuring the
accommodation for animals is maintained to a high standard for the safety,
health and well-being of
the animals and for attractive exhibition to the public.
May include:
• Weeding,
• helping keepers
maintain/ re-new perching,
• helping keeper by
providing nesting opportunities/ materials
• Monitoring the
animals carefully for behavioural, reproductive and medical problems and ensure prompt action is
taken to alleviate them. For example:
• Watching newly
mixed pairs of birds,
• watching groups of
birds in aviaries where a new bird is being introduced,
• watching birds
housed in large groups to identify pairs/ find nests
• Answering queries
from volunteers and the visiting public to promote
the work of Durrell.
Overall requirements
for the placement
Essential:
• Applicants must be
at least 18.
• Must be able to
commit to 12 months.
• Have a good
command of English.
• Applicants should
be studying a relevant
degree or course at
the time of the placement.
• A high degree of
fitness is required as the work is physically demanding.
• Any medical
problems, allergies, disabilities etc. which may affect the student’s work must
be explained at the application stage.
• Applicants should
be happy to work outdoors in all weather conditions.
• Have a valid
driving license.
• Have your own
transportation - to get to the chough project and for moving equipment.
• This is an unpaid
placement so the applicant must be self-funding.
• Accommodation will
not be provided; applicants therefore must organize and fund their own living
arrangements.
Desirable:
• Have a background
in biological sciences.
• Provide careful
attention to data recording.
• Experience of
ArcView and/or QGIS software, GPS handling, and radio tracking techniques.
• Experience of
captive animal husbandry.
Application
If you are
interested in further details or if you wish to apply please contact Susie
Brayshaw at volunteer@durrell.org
or 01534 860045.
Closing date 31st March 2016
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