California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s CWPAP
8-hour days: 20%
10-hour days: 75%
>10-hour days: 5%
In the field: 75%
In the office: 25%
Spawner/Redd Surveys: 24%
Snorkel Surveys: 16%
Volunteer Management: 10%
Commuting To/From Field Sites: 8%
Habitat Surveys: 8%
Data Entry: 8%
Education & Outreach: 8%
Seining: 7%
Sonar (ARIS) Installation/Monitoring: 7%
E-Fishing: 2%
H2O Monitoring: 2%
The Mission of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is to manage California's diverse fish, wildlife, and plant resources, and the habitats upon which they depend, for their ecological values and for their use and enjoyment by the public. The Coastal Watershed Planning and Assessment Program (CWPAP) and Southern Humboldt and Mendocino Counties Fisheries Management (SH-M) are CDFW programs with the following primary objectives: conducting fishery-based watershed assessments and corresponding watershed/salmonid recovery planning efforts; and salmonid population monitoring in the Eel River Watershed. WSP Corpsmembers attain significant field experience in the monitoring of endangered species of salmon and steelhead and gain important first-hand knowledge of fishery management and recovery operations at a state-level agency. Utilizing Coastal California Salmonid Monitoring Plan (CMP) protocols and methods, this site conducts fall and winter spawner surveys in the South Fork Eel River to assess population size and distribution of Coho Salmon as well as collecting additional data on Chinook Salmon and steelhead. This program site also operates 2 ARIS/DIDSON sonar cameras in the fall and winter to determine the run timing and produce adult Chinook Salmon and steelhead abundance estimates for the mainstem Eel River and Van Duzen Rivers.
The data from these fall and winter monitoring efforts measure the progress toward federal and state recovery plans and escapement estimates are critically important in fisheries management planning.
In addition to these fall and winter data collection efforts, this Placement Site conducts late spring and summer surveys evaluating stream habitat conditions for salmonids. These stream surveys include mask and snorkel surveys which corpsmembers collect data on fish occupancy rates and distribution of juvenile salmonids. The data collected from these survey efforts plays a critical role informing watershed recovery planning efforts, such as the Salmonid Habitat and Restoration Priorities working group. The Mentors and Site Supervisor are steering committee members in this working group, which is a planning process involving state and federal agencies, California Native Tribes, non-profits, and private landowners to identify effective restoration within priority areas of salmon recovery (https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/habitat-conservation/identifying-salmon-habitat-restoration-priorities- northern). Throughout the year, Corpsmembers also participate in a variety of other field work conducted at this site that includes but not limited to: estuarine species seining and water quality sampling, juvenile fish pit-tagging, juvenile fish minnow trapping, electro-fishing, fish relocation, drought monitoring, etc.
Mentors work closely with Corpsmembers both in a small and interactive office setting as well as in the field. Interaction between Mentors and CMs occurs on a weekly basis, and Mentors are generally easily available to their CMs throughout their year of service. Training is provided for all field and data management activities. CMs and new technicians are paired with experienced surveyors (includes Mentors and CDFW scientific aids, which usually includes former WSP CMs) to ensure a strong grasp of the survey protocols and techniques, which leads to quality data collection and well-trained personnel. There is a fair amount of overlap between projects occurring at the site and Mentors interact with both CMs throughout the year. The District Biologist oversees the SF Eel River Spawning Ground Surveys in the fall and winter, and Dave Kajtaniak oversees the DIDSON Sonar Monitoring Project on the lower Mainstem Eel River during this same time period. Corpsmembers will benefit by working on each project and with each Mentor. Spring and summer entails stream habitat and biological inventories which all Mentors are involved and work equally with the CMs. Additional monthly monitoring occurs in estuarine environments with all Mentors and other professionals from CDFW and the Wiyot Tribe, which allows CMs to diversify their species monitoring experience.
The CDFW and WSP program missions are compatible, and Corpsmembers benefit from time served here. This Placement Site's CMs gain invaluable experience in a diverse array of field/biological sampling methodologies in unique, biologically significant locations that other sites are not able to provide. In addition, the CWPAP Placement Sites is one of the few sites in the WSP program that provides the opportunity to acquire hands on experience with ARIS/DIDSON sonar
cameras. This technology is providing invaluable data on the adult salmonid populations in the Eel River watershed and is being utilized in other watersheds along the entire Pacific Northwest. Moreover, with CDFW being the lead agency in the recovery of salmonid species, the on-going programs at this site work with a wide range of partners, including the following: other federal (NOAA Fisheries and BLM) and state agencies, California Native Tribes, non-governmental organizations, private consulting companies, municipalities, and private landowners. Therefore, CMs get valuable experience seeing collaborations and partnerships at work. A current Mentor and Site Supervisor are WSP Alumni, and they have an intimate understanding of the importance and role they play as Mentors to their WSP CMs. Collectively, the Mentors and Site Supervisor have 30+ year’s experience in the role as WSP Mentors and are dedicated to providing a supportive, inclusive, and professional learning environment. It is the site’s wish to maintain this partnership for the benefit it provides the public and significant environmental resources in the region. Moreover, this site has been able to provide seasonal employment to our WSP CMs following the completion of their term of service. This has been a mutually beneficial arrangement as WSP CMs have the opportunity to acquire state employment with a natural resource agency, and it maintains consistency and quality assurance for our program. In addition, incoming WSP CMs gain valuable knowledge and insight by working alongside these former WSP CMs who have an understanding of all the benefits of being in the WSP program and how to make the most of their WSP term of service. Furthermore, the Eel River Watershed plays a critical role in the recovery of salmonids in California.
Ability to hike in streams/rough terrain during periods of inclement weather
Be a capable swimmer
Comfortable with tent camping or staying in rustic field housing during certain times of the year
Ability to work a flexible schedule when needed, such as occasional weekend work and ability to go on multi- overnight trips
Strong interest in conducting biological and habitat monitoring
Experience with driving 4x4 vehicles on non-paved roads is preferred