Jimmyman28 said:
Do you watch some of the T.V shows, I'm not sure what they have over there but I know one show Jeff Corwin. You basically do stuff like that except you have to do a little more research. He got lucky and got to have his own T.V show . During all of his "adventures" he to does the research and stuff, they just don't show you those kind of things as offten. Just the excitement of catching the wild animals.
My degree is in fisheries biology (very similar to wildlife biology, and I took classes in wildlife before switching). It's nothing like what Jeff Corwin does. It's a government position, typically speaking, and you spend time monitoring GAME animals for the most part. Unless you are working as a researcher at a college, there is little interest or money for studies of non-game species simply because they do not bring any money into the department. Game animals do, in the form of hunting and fishing licenses and what not.
That's not to say that you never get to work with non-game species, just that most of your focus and resulting projects will be based on game species.
In order to work as a fisheries or wildlife biologist be prepared to use a lot of statistics in addition to having good people skills. I used to spend a lot of time on the phone consulting with land owners who wanted more information on our programs and laws.
The other thing to realize is that there are few jobs available for fish and wildlife biologists, so expect to have to move pretty far away- it's doubtful that you will find a job in your neighborhood, or even within driving distance. I became a teacher instead of continuing my fisheries work because the only permanent job I could find was in Oregon, paying $20,000 a year with no benefits. I would have been counting migratory game fish via a viewing window in a dam, and the feds would have had the option of moving me anywhere they wanted, at any time, for two years. It's a tough game to get into.
tricksterpup said:
I look at it this way, get a good paying job in what ever you like and then buy the animals you want. If you want to breed corn snakes then have the money to buy the morphs you want or any other herp that catches your fancy.
I agree with this. I am never quite as happy at the end of a 6.5 hour day of teaching as I was at the end of a 10 hour day working as a fish biologist. BUT... my starting pay was $35,000 as a teacher, with great benefits, in the neighborhood I grew up in. I make enough money now, in my 3rd year, to buy a house next fall, and I bought a nice car two years ago (2004 model Nissan XTerra). In addition, I have plenty of money left over to purchase the animals I want to work with- herps and fish- and time to work with them as well.
There's a lot to be said for fisheries and wildlife work. If I could find a local job working fisheries... and it was close to the same salary I make now... I'd probably take it. But I doubt I will ever have that chance. All across the country, natural resource agencies are taking huge budget cuts, forcing them to reduce their staff loads and cut important projects. They are being asked to do more and more with less and less. Apparently it is hoped that they will eventually do everything with nothing!
