West Nile Virus Research Technician (Avian and Mosquito), Winous Point Marsh Conservancy
WNV Tech Job Description:
The Winous Point Marsh Conservancy (WPMC), located just outside Port Clinton in Ottawa County, Ohio, is a non-profit conservation organization that maintains Ohio’s largest privately-owned wetland (5000 acres). WPMC is committed to wetland conservation, education, and research, and helps support graduate student research projects as well as state and federally funded wetland and wildlife monitoring programs.
Primarily, the West Nile Virus Project Tech will assist the West Nile Project Manager with all aspects of a collaborative research project led by Ohio State University (OSU) researchers, titled “Modeling biotic and environmental drivers of seasonal West Nile virus transmission” (90% of overall workload). WPMC’s role in this collaboration is to oversee and coordinate all aspects of passerine bird trapping.
Specific job duties of this position include:
• Using mist-netting (primary) and other trapping techniques (secondary) to capture passerine birds in Ottawa, Lucas, Franklin, and Union Counties, Ohio
• Aging, sexing, banding and blood draws of captured passerines
• Data management and data quality control for ~2,500 blood samples annually that must be catalogued and delivered to OSU for PCR and ELISA testing
• Conducting mosquito trapping as needed. Includes collecting mosquitoes from inside of underground culverts
Desired Skills:
• Excellent at verbal and written communication
• Excellent at data management and organization
• Experience using a variety of trapping techniques to capture birds
• Experience sexing, aging, banding, conducting blood draws, and attaching transmitters to a variety of birds
• Willingness to work in adverse weather conditions (e.g., bugs, cold, wind, heat, darkness, etc.)
Travel:
Some travel to trapping sites is required. All sites are within 1 hour of WPMC. Opportunity to travel to attend or present at professional conferences will be encouraged.
Work Hours:
Typically, 7:00 am to 3:00 pm Monday – Friday, however many early morning hours may be required for mist-netting. Limited weekend work will be required. Candidate may flex their work schedule to maintain ~40 hour work week.
Application Process:
Email a cover letter outlining your interest, a resume, and three references to: Brendan Shirkey, brendan@winous.org; (419) 341-7036. Winous Point Marsh Conservancy, 3500 S Lattimore Road, Port Clinton, OH 43452.
Thank you,
John Simpson, Executive Director
Brendan Shirkey, Research Biologist
Nate Stott, Post-Doctoral Researcher
- Posted: December 16, 2025
- Job Type: Field technician
- Application deadline: 03/01/2026
- Organization: Winous Point Marsh Conservancy
- Qualifications: Working on a Bachelor’s or advanced graduate (preferred) degree in wildlife conservation, ecology, biology, environmental science, or related field
- How to apply: Email a cover letter outlining your interest, a resume, and three references to: Brendan Shirkey, brendan@winous.org; (419) 341-7036. Winous Point Marsh Conservancy, 3500 S Lattimore Road, Port Clinton, OH 43452.
- Location: Port Clinton OH
Contact Information
Brendan Shirkey
Winous Point Marsh Conservancy
3500 S Lattimore RD
Port Clinton, OH
43452
US
+16122327154
brendan@winous.org