Azura is seeking a Diadromous Fisheries Analyst to support the NOAA Fisheries Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) Protected Species Division (PSD). The Analyst will serve as the Salmon Watershed Habitat Assessment Coordinator for Climate Resilience Science for the Atlantic Salmon Ecosystems Branch and will work with experienced salmon scientists and managers to synthesize information available from the microhabitat to watershed scales using existing and novel data to develop science products that support identification of the core characteristics and location of climate resilient habitat.

Background

Atlantic salmon in Maine are critically endangered, and low marine survival and other climate stressors in rivers are challenges to recovery (Gillis et al. 2022; Henderson et al. 2023). To counter these threats, scientists recommend a fundamental strategy to ensure that the highest number of wild smolts in the best condition leave from rivers and coastal areas to the ocean (Thorstad et al. 2021). Through climate scenario planning, research needs related to this strategy were to 1) establish and implement a water temperature monitoring system to support efforts to identify climate vulnerable and/or resilient habitats and 2) inventory and prioritize freshwater habitats that provide the best opportunity for recovery, including climate resilient habitats (Borggaard et al. 2019). In hatchery-dependent rivers of Maine, stocking of eggs, fry, and other juvenile stages into more resilient habitat should both increase natural smolt production and optimize limited conservation hatchery products.

The Diadromous Fisheries Analyst will coordinate this project by working with experienced salmon scientists and managers to synthesize available information from the microhabitat to watershed scales and to develop science products that support identification of the core characteristics and location of climate resilient habitat. Project outputs will inform managers' understanding of current and future coldwater habitat dynamics related to seasonal rearing potential and thermal refuges with a focus on juvenile rearing and spawner summer holding habitats. The Federal Recovery Plan states that managers secure a minimum of 90,000 units of accessible and suitable habitat as a delisting criterion. The Critical Habitat Final Rule (74 FR 29300, 2019) identified watersheds known to currently contain the most abundant and suitable habitats for Atlantic salmon. However, the course scale of suitable habitat documentation and an incomplete understanding of watershed level thermal challenges, fish ecology, and management opportunities in refuge habitat needs targeted locally relevant conceptual refinement and quantitative assessment. Climate resiliency research has provided information on areas in Maine with higher base flow (Lombard et al. 2021), which may in turn have cooler waters and have greater resilience to climate change (Mejia et al. 2023). The Diadromous Fisheries Analyst coordinating this project will target Maine Atlantic salmon watersheds to synthesize and add value to this baseflow layer in concert with abundant temperature and fish abundance data.

The project will require coordination and communication with state, federal, and tribal biologists that have collected much of these data but lack capacity to integrate across watersheds and scale within watersheds to inform Atlantic salmon conservation science. The Analyst will work closely with NOAA Fisheries Maine Field Station Staff and collaboratively with Maine Department of Marine Resources, Maine Sea Grant, Tribal, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife staff.

Place of Performance and Work Schedule

Work is anticipated to be from a location in the Greater Orono or Bangor, Maine area or possibly remote. Work is full-time (40 hours per week, Monday through Friday) and expected to last approximately one year (October 2024 - September 2025) with the possibility of extension. During workdays, candidates must be able to respond to all communications within 24 hours and conduct calls and meetings as necessary during normal business hours. Travel may be required. This position is not open to visa sponsorship or relocation assistance.

Compensation and Benefits

• Rate: $33.97-$47.02/hour depending on skills, education, and work experience
• Competitive benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; life and disability insurance; and paid time off for vacation, sick leave, and federal holidays.

Duties

The employee will perform a variety of tasks, including 6 subprojects, to support this project. Specific tasks may include the following:

• Subproject #1: Complete a peer-reviewed publication that documents temperature-related stressors to juvenile production in the Upper Narraguagus River using existing data and lead an interagency writing team
• Subproject #2: Oversee the combination of thermal map layer from recent Thermal Infrared (TIR) and habitat suitability criteria to assess level of thermal heterogeneity in different river segments and which cold water patches could potentially be the most important to ensure connectivity at small (i.e., between spawning and rearing habitat patches) and large scales (i.e., along the migration corridor)
• Subproject #3: Assist NEFSC staff in the logistics of the Maine Salmon Rivers Water Temperature Group by coordinating meetings, organizing and cataloging data across platforms, and conducting annual review of protocols and data quality
• Subproject #4: Identify other temperature data synthesis and analysis opportunities to expand NEFSC documentation of thermal threats across critical habitat areas using existing data and identify under-monitored areas with focus on index watersheds through operationalizing concepts in Gillis et al. (2023) for Maine watersheds
• Subproject #5: Develop user interfaces and documentation for temperature synthesis, display, analysis and increase utility of data to support broader habitat models.
• Subproject #6: Develop a literature synthesis and conceptual model to address thermal refuge concept of sufficiency: how many, how large, and where do salmon need refuge habitat for thermal and population resilience and at what scale. This synthesis will examine the role of thermal refuges and their spatial juxtaposition to sub basins and watershed productivity for discrete populations to better quantity spatially referenced habitat model to predict stream reaches that most likely contain the substrate and flow features that most often support Atlantic salmon spawning and juvenile rearing habitats (e.g., Meija et al. 2023).
• Within 30 days of project initiation, develop timelines and sequencing of six subprojects with milestones and deliverables
• Prepare monthly progress reports to include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following: accomplishments, issues encountered, travel (including purpose, significant outcomes, action items), and recommendations, if applicable. With updates on each of the 6 subprojects.
• Prepare a manuscript on the temperature-related stressors to juvenile production in the Upper Narraguagus River (Mar 2025)
• Prepare a technical report or manuscript on the following: a literature synthesis and conceptual model to address thermal refuge concept of sufficiency in Maine watersheds (Sept 2025)
• Prepare a draft report or manuscript documenting methods and findings when work products are complete

Required Qualifications

• Master of Science or a Doctor of Philosophy degree in a scientific field
• Proficient in spatial data analysis and manipulation, ArcGIS, R and/or Python programming language(s)
• Experience with large datasets and development of tools in R
• Excellent reading comprehension and scientific writing skills
• Ability to multitask and work with short deadlines
• Eligibility to work in the U.S.
• Candidate must be able to obtain a Public Trust Clearance which requires passing a thorough background check.

Preferred Qualifications

• Habitat and conceptual modeling experience preferred

Thank you for applying. Azura Consulting LLC (Azura) is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of any status or condition protected by applicable federal or state law. We strongly encourage all qualified persons to apply for this position.

This recruitment process can take several weeks. Once we narrow the applicants, we conduct virtual interviews with chosen applicants and make a final selection. The chosen candidate then undergoes a federal background investigation which often takes 6 to 16 weeks; the candidate either passes or fails based on NOAA's regulations. Contingent upon satisfactory completion of this investigation and United States work authorization verification, Azura will formally offer the position to the preferred applicant. If the applicant fails this investigation, the next applicant who meets the position's criteria will be contacted. Azura will notify all other applicants if they are not chosen for the position.

About Azura

Azura is a woman-owned small business headquartered in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. We offer 'big city' resources with 'small town' customer service. Our primary consulting services are focused on natural resources, professional writing and editing, and educational outreach and communication. Please see our website above for more information.

Resources for Applicants

74 FR 29300. (June 19, 2009, June 19). Endangered and Threatened Species; Designation of Critical Habitat for Atlantic Salmon (Salmo Salar) Gulf of Maine Distinct Population Segment.

Borggaard, D., Dick, D., Star, J., Alexander, M., Bernier, M., Collins, M., Damon-Randall, K., Dudley, R., Griffis, R., Hayes, S. and Johnson, M., 2019. Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) climate scenario planning pilot report.  https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/33877

Gillis*, C., Ouellet*, V., Breau, C., Frechette, D., Bergeron, N., Ouellet, V., Breau, C., Frechette, D., 2023. Canadian Water Resources Journal / Revue canadienne. Assessing climate change impacts on North American freshwater habitat of wild Atlantic salmon - urgent needs for collaborative research Assessing climate change impacts on North American freshwater habit. https://doi.org/10.1080/07011784.2022.2163190

Henderson, M.E., Mills, K.E., Alexander, M.A., Barajas, M., Collins, M.J., Dzaugis, M., Kircheis, D. and Sheehan, T.F., 2023. A synthesis of US Atlantic salmon habitat requirements and implications for future suitability under a changing climate. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 80(8), pp.2051-2073. https://academic.oup.com/icesjms/article/80/8/2051/7272634

Mejia*, F. Ouellet*, V., Briggs, M. A., Carlson, S. M., Casas-Mulet, R., Chapman, M., Collins, M. J., Dugdale, S. J., Ebersole, J. L., Frechette, D. M., Fullerton, A. H., Gillis, C., Johnson, Z. C., Kelleher, C., Kurylyl, B. L., Lave, R., Letcher, B. H., Myrlvold, M. K., Nadeau, T., Neville, H., Péguay, H., Smith, K. A., Tonolla, D., and Torgersen, C. E.  2023. Closing the gap between science and management of cold-water refuges in rivers and streams. Global Change Biology, 00, 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16844

Lombard, P.J., Dudley, R.W., Collins, M.J., Saunders, R., & Atkinson, E. 2021. Model estimated baseflow for streams with endangered Atlantic Salmon in Maine, USA. River Research and Applications, 37(9), 1254 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/rra.3835

Thorstad, E.B., Bliss, D., Breau, C., Damon‐Randall, K., Sundt‐Hansen, L.E., Hatfield, E.M., Horsburgh, G., Hansen, H., Maoiléidigh, N.Ó., Sheehan, T. and Sutton, S.G., 2021. Atlantic salmon in a rapidly changing environment—Facing the challenges of reduced marine survival and climate change. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 31(9), pp.2654-2665.-1264. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aqc.3624