Field Party Chief / Survey Component Lead - Level II (Gulf Video Survey)

Job Description

Job Description

*US Citizenship Required

*Position is Subject to Contract Award

Location: Pascagoula, MS or Panama City, FL (with at-sea travel on NOAA Ships and research vessels)

Client Organization: NOAA Fisheries – SEFSC, Population & Ecosystems Monitoring Division

Overview

Serve as Field Party Chief and Survey Component Lead for GCRF Gulf Video surveys, providing advanced leadership on a specific survey component (e.g., habitat mapping, automated processing) while supporting at-sea operations, video annotation, and data management.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Lead pre- and post-survey inventory of equipment and gear; submit cruise instructions and cruise reports.
• Ensure all participant clearance forms are completed and submitted.
• Plan and provide logistical support for surveys including shipboard data collection and post-survey activities.
• Serve as liaison between ship, laboratory, participants, and TAS program.
• Coordinate daily vessel activities, personnel, positions, ports of call, and weather conditions.
• Conduct at-sea data collection, biological/environmental sampling, and process data per SOPs.
• Report weekly progress to Branch Chief and Survey Coordinator; complete incident reports as required.
• QA/QC data for entry into lab databases; unload, clean, and store gear.
• Serve as subject matter expert for marine fish identification in Gulf of America and Caribbean Sea habitats.
• Serve as point of contact for survey components (habitat mapping, video QA/QC, database management, automated processing).
• Execute video annotation workflow (VIAME); manage review/tracking sheets and GitHub project.
• QA/QC video data in Oracle databases; assist with data backup and security.
• Support AI/ML data output integration; assist analysts with data prep, report drafting, and figure creation.
• Attend and present at professional scientific meetings.
• Participate in public outreach and education activities.

Required Qualifications

• MS Degree in Marine Science or related field, OR BS Degree plus 3 years of relevant experience.
• Computer proficiency with word processing, database, statistical, and graphics software; college-level writing and oral presentation skills.
• Knowledge of SEAMAP field sampling protocols for reef fish.
• Experience as lead data collector on at-sea surveys; proficiency with shipboard hydrological (SCS) and biological (SEAL) data systems.
• Proficiency in fish, invertebrate, and protected species identification; knowledge of reef taxa from the Gulf of America.
• Knowledge of procedures when encountering endangered or threatened species.
• Must meet NOAA OMAO sea-duty medical fitness requirements; current tetanus vaccine required.