Park Ranger

Staglands Wildlife Reserve; Upper Hutt; On-site; NZD 52,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

Staglands Wildlife Reserve in New Zealand is seeking a full-time Park Ranger to join a motivated team responsible for keeping birds and animals healthy and the Reserve looking its best for visitors.

The role requires weekend work, school and public holidays, and reliable transport. You should have experience with animals, be fit for outdoors in all weather, and be able to work with the public while maintaining safety and procedures. NZ residency or a valid NZ work visa is required.

Qualifications

• Experience with animals or animal husbandry.
• Ability to communicate with a wide range of people.
• Good time management and reliability.
• Stable work history (minimum 2 years with one employer).
• Ability to follow health and safety procedures.

Responsibilities

• Assist with animal and bird husbandry and welfare tasks.
• Groom enclosures and keep areas tidy for visitors.
• Operate park equipment (tractor, lawn mower, leaf blower).
• Host Junior Ranger experiences and visitor talks.
• Drive our tractor/UTE and ensure guest satisfaction with their visit.

Skills

Animal husbandry

Communication skills

Time management

Teamwork

Health & safety

Tools

Tractor operation

Lawn mower

Leaf blower

Manual driver’s license

Job description

We are looking for a full-time Park Ranger to help with the running of The Reserve. You will be joining a small, motivated team that works incredibly hard keeping the birds and animals happy and healthy and the Reserve looking its absolute best to impress our many visitors.

You will need to be available to work one day in the weekend as well as school and public holidays. As Staglands is located in the Akatarawa Valley, a 20 minute drive from Upper Hutt, you will need good, reliable transport. We have some flexibility with this role. You will need to have worked with animals and be able to demonstrate experience in animal husbandry and be up to date with current industry best practice or be able to assist with the extensive repairs and maintenance work that goes into keeping Staglands operating. This could be either mechanical/engineering or building.

Whichever leaning you have the following will be important:

• An interest in wildlife and conservation
• Ability to communicate with a wide range of people
• Good time management
• A stable work record ie minimum of 2 years with one employer
• Good attitude towards your work colleagues and workplace
• Understanding of the importance of health and safety in the workplace
• Ability to follow workplace procedures and paperwork as required.

You will be regularly interacting with our visitors so you must have a personable manner and enjoy working with people. Your ability to communicate with a wide range of people will be critical to your success at Staglands.

All Park Rangers, whatever their role will at some stage be involved in the following:

• Assisting with animal and bird husbandry and welfare issues
• Grooming enclosures and other areas to ensure they are neat and tidy for our visitors
• Using equipment such as leaf blower, lawn mower, etc
• Hosting the Junior Ranger Experience and other visitor talks and experiences
• Driving our tractor and ute-a manual driver's license would be good
• Ensuring all our customers are wowed by their experience at the park.

Part of your job will involve Tractor Trailer Rides so tractor experience would be an advantage, but training can be given to someone with the right attitude. Awareness of the importance of adhering to safety procedures is essential.

This is a physical job. There is lifting involved and a good level of fitness is essential. You must be able to prove you can work outside in all weather and get the job done even when it is wet, cold and a desk job is looking more attractive.

You will need NZ residency or a valid NZ work visa plus a full NZ driver’s license. Anyone looking for short-term work need not apply.