Fish Biologist.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS); Warm Springs (GA); On-site; USD 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Georgia seeks a Fish Biologist to support hatchery operations, monitor fish health, and analyze biological data to support restoration and outreach efforts.

The role involves assisting with projects, maintaining records, and engaging with partners and the public. GS-07/09 responsibilities include leading daily activities, conducting disease examinations, collecting water quality data, and producing reports.

Qualifications

• Requires a biological science background with coursework or equivalent.
• Experience with hatchery operations, disease control, broodstock care, egg incubation, feeding, cleaning, and tagging.
• Ability to collect and analyze water quality and biological data and implement corrective actions.
• Experience maintaining electronic records and generating hatchery reports.
• Involves conducting outreach and public relations as part of partnerships.

Responsibilities

• Assist with daily hatchery operations and fish culture activities.
• Conduct visual and microscopic examinations of fish for diseases and parasites; implement control plans.
• Collect, monitor, and analyze water quality and biological data; apply corrective measures.
• Maintain electronic records and generate hatchery operation reports.
• Support annual reporting, facility management, safety, budgeting, partnerships, outreach, and public relations.

Skills

Fish culture

Disease control

Water quality

Data analysis

Reporting

Education

Biological science degree

Job description

Duties

In this role, you support fish culture and conservation by helping manage daily hatchery operations, monitoring fish health, collecting and analyzing biological data, assisting with projects and studies, and engaging with partners and the public to support fishery restoration and outreach.

GS-07 Fish Biologist Major Duties

• Assist with daily hatchery operations including fish culture, disease control, broodstock care, egg incubation, feeding, cleaning, and tagging programs.
• Conduct visual and microscopic examinations of fish for diseases and parasites, and implement disease control plans under supervision.
• Collect and help analyze water quality and biological data to support healthy fish production and apply corrective measures as directed.
• Maintain electronic records and generate reports on hatchery operations, including feeding, water quality, disease incidents, inventory, and production.
• Support technical and administrative tasks such as annual reporting, facility management, safety, training, budgeting, partnerships, outreach, and public relations.

GS-09 Fish Biologist Major Duties

• Lead daily hatchery operations by managing fish culture activities, disease control, broodstock care, egg incubation, feeding, cleaning, and tagging programs.
• Conduct visual and microscopic examinations of fish for diseases and parasites, recommend actions, and administer treatments as needed.
• Collect, monitor, and analyze water quality and biological data to ensure healthy fish production and implement corrective measures.
• Maintain electronic records and generate reports on hatchery operations, including feeding, water quality,disease incidents, inventory, and production.
• Assist with technical and administrative tasks such as annual reporting, facility management, safety, training, budgeting, partnerships, outreach, and public relations.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• Must provide proof of U.S. citizenship.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit
• Position may require possession of a valid state driver's license.
• Position may require wearing a uniform in accordance with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service policy.
• Position requires responding to emergency alarms for mechanical or water supply failures, which may interrupt sleep and require extended physical effort (removing ice/debris, clearing pond screens, repairing equipment).
• Work may be performed alone, and the employee is responsible for performing duties in a safe and orderly manner in accordance with Service policy.
• You may be required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with purchase authority.
• You must be at least (1)18 years old or (2) at least 16 years old and: (a) Have graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or (b) Have completed a formal vocational training program; or (c) Have received a statement from school authorities agreeing with their preference for employment rather than continuing their education; or (d) Be currently enrolled in a secondary school and either work only during school vacation periods or work part-time during the school year under a formal student employment program.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-08/31/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience.

Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience.

For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

Minimum Qualification Requirements

To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Basic Educational Requirements

• A. Degree: major in biological science that included:
  • At least 6 semester hours in aquatic subjects such as limnology, ichthyology, fishery biology, aquatic botany, aquatic fauna, oceanography, fish culture, or related courses in the field of fishery biology; and
  • At least 12 semester hours in the animal sciences in such subjects as general zoology, vertebrate zoology, comparative anatomy, physiology, entomology, parasitology, ecology, cellular biology, genetics, or research in these fields. (Excess course work in aquatic subjects may be used to meet this requirement when appropriate.) You must submit transcripts.

-OR-

• B. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in biological science (i.e., at least 30 semester hours), of which a minimum of 6 semester hours were in aquatic subjects and 12semester hours were in the animal sciences, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

-AND-

To qualify for this position at the GS-7 grade level:

• Specialized Experience Requirement: you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience:
  • Assist with daily hatchery operations including fish culture, disease control, broodstock care, egg incubation, feeding, cleaning, and tagging programs.
  • Conduct visual and microscopic examinations of fish for diseases and parasites and implement disease control plans under supervision.
  • Collect and help analyze water quality and biological data to support healthy fish production and apply corrective measures as directed.
  • Maintain electronic records and generate reports on hatchery operations, including feeding, water quality, disease incidents, inventory, and production.
  • Support technical and administrative tasks such as annual reporting, facility management, safety, training, budgeting, partnerships, outreach, and public relations. You must include hours per week worked.

-OR-

Education

Successful completion of at least one year of graduate-level education in biological science or related field of study. You must include transcripts.

-OR-

Combination of education and experience

Successful completion of a combination of education and experience described above. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include transcripts

To qualify for this position at the GS-9 grade level:

• Specialized Experience Requirement: you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience:
  • Lead daily hatchery operations by managing fish culture activities, disease control, broodstock care, egg incubation, feeding, cleaning, and tagging programs.
  • Conduct visual and microscopic examinations of fish for diseases and parasites, recommend actions, and administer treatments as needed.
  • Collect, monitor, and analyze water quality and biological data to ensure healthy fish production and implement corrective measures.
  • Maintain electronic records and generate reports on hatchery operations, including feeding, water quality, disease incidents, inventory, and production.
  • Assist with technical and administrative tasks such as annual reporting, facility management, safety, training, budgeting, partnerships, outreach, and public relations.

-OR-

Education

Successful completion of at least two years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degreein biological science or related field of study. You must include transcripts.

-OR-

Combination of education and experience

Successful completion of a combination of education and experience described above. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include transcripts

Volunteer Experience

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

This position has a mandatory education requirement.

You must submit a copy of your transcript(s) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include your name, school name, grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, and date the degree was conferred, if applicable. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Non-submission may result in being rated not qualified for the position. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

Foreign Education

To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | U.S. Department of Education.

Additional information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.

Term positions do not convey permanent status in the Federal service. The agency retains sole discretion and without further competition, the right to extend the duration of this appointment after selection and/or appointment, based on changes to the term appointment regulation(s). No extension to a term appointment shall be granted to a selectee/employee to an amount of time that exceeds the maximum number of years authorized under any present or current regulation, unless such regulation expressly allows such action.

Related Non-Federal experience or related experience as retired members of the uniformed services may be credited towards computing entitlement to leave accrual, at managerial discretion, providing that experience meets certain criteria. This provision allows new employees to earn annual leave at a higher rate than would otherwise be allowed. (5 Code of Federal Regulations, 630).

All Department of Interior (DOI) employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here,

Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.