Zoo Jobs: Senior Aquarist

Senior Aquarist

Anglesey Sea Zoo & Marine Resource Centre

Job Title: Senior Aquarist

Location: Anglesey Sea Zoo & Marine Resource Centre

Contract type: Full time, Permanent

Contact: matt@angleseyseazoo.co.uk

The Anglesey Sea Zoo and Marine Resource Centre is pleased to announce an exciting new opportunity- we are now recruiting a Senior Aquarist to join our team of dedicated biologists at our unique and picturesque facility. The Anglesey Sea Zoo is an award-winning tourist attraction dedicated to promoting, protecting and educating the public on the wealth of marine life found around the British Isles. We are a purely native marine aquarium located on the banks of the Menai Straits, with a focus on education, conservation and sustainability.

Job Description

The Senior Aquarist will be responsible for maintaining a high standard of animal husbandry and welfare; assisting the aquarium Curator in managing the aquarium team; helping to develop new and existing displays and visitor interactions; assisting the aquarium Curator in ensuring aquarium admin and zoo license compliance is kept up to date.

Duties/ Responsibilities:

Animal Husbandry

· Ensure day to day management of animal husbandry.

· Develop animal welfare and husbandry practice improvements alongside the Curator.

· Ensure correct monitoring, management and recording of exhibit water parameters and water quality.

· Help to maintain and repair exhibit life support systems, including regular maintenance checks, servicing and record keeping.

· Assist Curator in modifying existing life support systems and pipework, or installation of new systems.

· Monitor nutrition, preparation, feeds and food storage for animal stocks, including regular review and updating of feeding regimes alongside the Curator.

· Assist the Curator and veterinary consultants with veterinary examinations, procedures and record keeping

· Assist in the design and creation of new exhibits, as well as updating existing displays.

· Assist the Curator in ensuring all aspects of zoo licensing are complied with and that all records are complete and in the specified formats.

· Assist in the captive breeding programs for Hippocampus hippocampus and Hippocampus guttulatus, including brood stock maintenance, fry collection and fry husbandry.

· Assist in the breed and release program for European lobsters, including brood stock husbandry, larval collection and rearing, juvenile husbandry and juvenile release.

· Assist in local collection of live foods, as well as new livestock animals.

· Assist in the safe transportation, health checking and quarantine process for collected and new livestock.

· Assist in updating and maintaining signage and interpretation around exhibit displays.

People Management

· Assist the Curator in the management of aquarium staff and volunteers in accordance with company procedures and policies. This can include assisting with: recruitment of staff; staff induction; staff training and development.

· Help to co-ordinate volunteer and work experience programs and internship/training programs.

Customer Service/ Interaction

· Must be courteous, pleasant and approachable at all times when dealing with the public.

· Deliver scheduled informative talks and feeding displays to the public, as well as tours and educational packages to school groups.

· Attend scheduled events and outreach programs as a representative of the Anglesey Sea Zoo.

· Help to develop public talks, feeding displays, educational packages and other interactive events

· Assist with coverage of the admissions desk, including cash handling and customer service representation.

Other Site Duties

· The successful applicant will be a key holder and must be available for scheduled 24 hours on call for environmental and intruder alarm activations.

· Cover Duty Manager responsibilities on scheduled days when the Curator is absent. Duties can include cash handling, management and collection; ensuring proper site opening and closing down; covering first aid responses.

· Attend training courses as required by the business.

Requirements

· At least three years’ fish keeping/aquarist experience

· Education to degree level or equivalent in an applicable science

· Full UK manual driving license

· Availability to respond to call-outs on a scheduled basis.

· Availability to work in shifts including weekends and bank holidays

Preferred Experience

· Experience maintaining, modifying and installing common life support system components and pipework

· Experience with seahorse husbandry, breeding and rearing in captivity

· PADI dive qualifications (esp. Rescue diver/dive master)

· Ability to use Microsoft packages, in particular excel and word.

· Ability to speak Welsh or the desire to learn.

· Ability to use construction tools and equipment.

How to Apply

If interested, please apply using your CV (3 pages max.) and cover letter by email to matt@angleseyseazoo.co.uk. Your cover letter should highlight how you would be able to fulfill this role and clearly demonstrate how you meet our requirements.

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