Fisheries Technician - Lab Manager

Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission is recruiting candidates to fill the role of Fisheries Technician 2 – Lab Manager at the Dworshak Reservoir and Lake Pend Oreille in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

The Fisheries Research team in the Panhandle and Clearwater regions is seeking a full‑time Senior Fisheries Research Technician who will serve as a Lab Manager to assist with fisheries research projects on Dworshak Reservoir and Lake Pend Oreille. The position will be in charge of coordinating logistics for various field and lab efforts and will help lead field sampling and lab processing for annual limnology, mysid shrimp, and kokanee monitoring.

Duty station is in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and temporary housing is available in Farragut State Park. Start date is March 1, 2026 but is flexible depending on applicant availability. Applicants with or without reasonable accommodations may be required to work long hours in varying and often inclement weather conditions, hiking steep and/or slippery terrain, and lifting and carrying items weighing up to 60 lbs.

The work schedule can be irregular at times and includes occasional weekend work, night work, and overnight stays in the field. Valid driver’s license required.

• Coordinate field and lab work logistics and scheduling to help ensure projects are completed within a timely manner.
• Lead kokanee field sampling and planning, including completing trawling and hydroacoustic surveys at night and ensuring equipment is functional.
• Lead kokanee lab processing, including processing scales and otoliths, identifying thermal marks within age structures, and finalizing data for age and origin analysis.
• Lead limnology, zooplankton, and mysid shrimp field and lab sampling, including operating boats during the day and night to collect samples, coordinating with a contracted limnologist to ensure samples are processed on time, and processing mysid samples in the lab.
• Maintain watercraft, field gear, lab equipment, work spaces and remote facilities as needed; facilitate repairs as needed.
• Lead data entry, QA/QC, and organization to ensure data is ready for analysis.
• Assist with other field efforts as needed, including but not limited to boat electrofishing, redd count surveys, gill netting on large vessels, and maintaining acoustic telemetry equipment.
• Assist with other lab efforts as needed, including but not limited to processing aging structures for age and growth analysis for several fish species.

• Lead and participate in survey crews that conduct fishery presence/absence research, recreational/commercial fishing surveys, anadromous fish escapement surveys (carcass, redd, trap/weir, snorkel, etc.), or tag detection and mark recovery surveys. Make standardized observations such as species identification, length, weight, behavior, growth, survival, reproductive condition, fin clips or tags, and/or signs of…