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Park Naturalists

Plan, develop, and conduct programs to inform public of historical, natural, and scientific features of national, state, or local park.
  • Summary

  • Details

  • Work Activities

    • Prepare and present illustrated lectures and interpretive talks about park features.
    • Perform emergency duties to protect human life, government property, and natural features of park.
    • Perform emergency duties to protect human life, government property, and natural features of park.
    • Provide visitor services, such as explaining regulations, answering visitor requests, needs and complaints, and providing information about the park and surrounding areas.
    • Assist with operations of general facilities, such as visitor centers.
    • Plan, organize and direct activities of seasonal staff members.
    • Perform emergency duties to protect human life, government property, and natural features of park.
    • Train staff on park programs.
    • Plan and develop audio-visual devices for public programs.
    • Provide care for park program animals.
    • Interview specialists in desired fields to obtain and develop data for park information programs.
    • Prepare brochures and write newspaper articles.
    • Plan and develop audio-visual devices for public programs.
    • Develop environmental educational programs and curricula for schools.
    • Research stories regarding the area's natural history or environment.
    • Construct historical, scientific, and nature visitor-center displays.
    • Take photographs and motion pictures for use in lectures and publications and to develop displays.
    • Prepare brochures and write newspaper articles.
    • Perform routine maintenance on park structures.
    • Provide care for park program animals.
    • Survey park to determine forest conditions and distribution and abundance of fauna and flora.
    • Confer with park staff to determine subjects and schedules for park programs.
    • Confer with park staff to determine subjects and schedules for park programs.
    • Plan and organize public events at the park.
    • Conduct field trips to point out scientific, historic, and natural features of parks, forests, historic sites, or other attractions.
    • Plan, organize and direct activities of seasonal staff members.
    • Plan, organize and direct activities of seasonal staff members.
    • Train staff on park programs.
    • Construct historical, scientific, and nature visitor-center displays.
    • Perform routine maintenance on park structures.
    • Construct historical, scientific, and nature visitor-center displays.
    • Compile and maintain official park photographic and information files.

    Skills

    • Monitoring
      • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
    • Troubleshooting
      • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
    • Critical Thinking
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
    • Instructing
      • Teaching people how to do something.
    • Learning Strategies
      • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
    • Equipment Maintenance
      • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
    • Management of Financial Resources
      • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
    • Equipment Selection
      • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
    • Quality Control Analysis
      • Testing how well a product or service works.
    • Social Perceptiveness
      • Understanding people's reactions.
    • Repairing
      • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
    • Judgment and Decision Making
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
    • Operation and Control
      • Using equipment or systems.
    • Writing
      • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
    • Management of Personnel Resources
      • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
    • Science
      • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
    • Operations Analysis
      • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
    • Service Orientation
      • Looking for ways to help people.
    • Operations Monitoring
      • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
    • Coordination
      • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
    • Complex Problem Solving
      • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
    • Persuasion
      • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
    • Speaking
      • Talking to others.
    • Technology Design
      • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
    • Negotiation
      • Bringing people together to solve differences.
    • Programming
      • Writing computer programs.
    • Systems Analysis
      • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
    • Mathematics
      • Using math to solve problems.
    • Installation
      • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
    • Active Listening
      • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
    • Management of Material Resources
      • Managing equipment and materials.
    • Active Learning
      • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
    • Time Management
      • Managing your time and the time of other people.
    • Systems Evaluation
      • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
    • Reading Comprehension
      • Reading work-related information.

    Abilities

    • Near Vision
      • Seeing details up close.
    • Auditory Attention
      • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
    • Speech Recognition
      • Recognizing spoken words.
    • Rate Control
      • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
    • Speed of Limb Movement
      • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
    • Extent Flexibility
      • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Depth Perception
      • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
    • Explosive Strength
      • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
    • Written Comprehension
      • Reading and understanding what is written.
    • Reaction Time
      • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
    • Finger Dexterity
      • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
    • Perceptual Speed
      • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
    • Spatial Orientation
      • Knowing where things are around you.
    • Manual Dexterity
      • Holding or moving items with your hands.
    • Wrist-Finger Speed
      • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
    • Originality
      • Creating new and original ideas.
    • Fluency of Ideas
      • Coming up with lots of ideas.
    • Multilimb Coordination
      • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
    • Control Precision
      • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
    • Stamina
      • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
    • Gross Body Coordination
      • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
    • Visual Color Discrimination
      • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
    • Sound Localization
      • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
    • Speech Clarity
      • Speaking clearly.
    • Static Strength
      • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
    • Oral Expression
      • Communicating by speaking.
    • Flexibility of Closure
      • Seeing hidden patterns.
    • Selective Attention
      • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
    • Glare Sensitivity
      • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
    • Dynamic Flexibility
      • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Dynamic Strength
      • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
    • Oral Comprehension
      • Listening and understanding what people say.
    • Peripheral Vision
      • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
    • Gross Body Equilibrium
      • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
    • Far Vision
      • Seeing details that are far away.
    • Night Vision
      • Seeing at night or under low light.
    • Hearing Sensitivity
      • Telling the difference between sounds.
    • Trunk Strength
      • Using your lower back and stomach.
    • Deductive Reasoning
      • Using rules to solve problems.
    • Speed of Closure
      • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
      • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
    • Written Expression
      • Communicating by writing.
    • Problem Sensitivity
      • Noticing when problems happen.
    • Inductive Reasoning
      • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
    • Information Ordering
      • Ordering or arranging things.
    • Category Flexibility
      • Grouping things in different ways.
    • Mathematical Reasoning
      • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
    • Number Facility
      • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
    • Memorization
      • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
    • Visualization
      • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
    • Response Orientation
      • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
    • Time Sharing
      • Doing two or more things at the same time.

    Knowledge

    • Fine Arts
      • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
    • Design
      • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
    • Medicine and Dentistry
      • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
    • Therapy and Counseling
      • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
    • Education and Training
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
    • Public Safety and Security
      • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
    • Mathematics
      • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
    • Production and Processing
      • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
    • Engineering and Technology
      • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
    • Economics and Accounting
      • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
    • Administration and Management
      • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
    • Customer and Personal Service
      • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
    • Psychology
      • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
    • Mechanical
      • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
    • Law and Government
      • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
    • Biology
      • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
    • Foreign Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
    • History and Archeology
      • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
    • Chemistry
      • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
    • English Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
    • Philosophy and Theology
      • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
    • Transportation
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
    • Telecommunications
      • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
    • Physics
      • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
    • Sociology and Anthropology
      • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
    • Communications and Media
      • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
    • Building and Construction
      • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
    • Geography
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
    • Administrative
      • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
    • Sales and Marketing
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
    • Personnel and Human Resources
      • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
    • Food Production
      • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
    • Computers and Electronics
      • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    Education

    Education
    Bachelor's degree
    Work Experience
    No work experience
    Training
    No on-the-job training

    Pay

    Washington Annual Salary
    81220/yr
    Washington Hourly Wage
    39.05/hr

    Washington Employment Trends

    Currently Employed
    1,100
    Yearly Projected Openings
    110

    Personality

    Social: People interested in this work like activities that include helping people, teaching, and talking. They do well at jobs that need:
    • Social Orientation
    • Intellectual Curiosity
    • Dependability
    • Optimism
    • Initiative
    • Integrity

    Tools

    • Adjustable widemouth pliers
    • Agricultural tractors
    • All terrain vehicles tracked or wheeled
    • Animal control traps
    • Backpack water pump
    • Binoculars
    • Boat Trailer
    • Bridles
    • Canoes or kayaks
    • Cash registers
    • Chain saw
    • Claw hammer
    • Digital camcorders or video cameras
    • Digital cameras
    • Dump trucks
    • Fire fighting pump truck
    • Fire suppression hand tools
    • Fishing rods
    • Global positioning system GPS receiver
    • Handguns
    • Hedge trimmer
    • Laser printers
    • Lawnmowers
    • Light trucks or sport utility vehicles
    • Lighters
    • Livestock trailers
    • Minivans or vans
    • Mobile medical services automated external defibrillators AED or hard paddles
    • Mobile medical services first aid kits
    • Mountain bicycles
    • Personal computers
    • Point of sale POS terminal
    • Power blowers
    • Power chippers
    • Rakes
    • Recreational motorboats
    • Reins
    • Saddles
    • Screwdrivers
    • Secateurs or pruning shears
    • Shovels
    • Skis
    • Soil probe
    • Special purpose telephones
    • Sprayers
    • Theodolites
    • Two way radios
    • Utility knives
    • Water analyzers
    • Water trucks

    Technology

    • Desktop publishing software
    • Document management software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Internet browser software
    • Map creation software
    • Office suite software
    • Point of sale POS software
    • Presentation software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Web page creation and editing software
    • Web platform development software
    • Word processing software