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Seeking Botanist, Arborist/Arboriculturist, Ecologist, Forester, Biologist, Geosciences/Geographer

Employer
Society for Conservation Biology
Location
San Francisco, California, US
Salary
Competitive
Closing date
Sep 28, 2022

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Sector
Academic / Research, Nonprofit
Field
Conservation science
Discipline
Botany
Salary Type
Salary
Employment Type
Full time
Seeking Botanist, Arborist/Arboriculturist, Ecologist, Forester, Biologist, Geosciences/Geographer
Seeking Botanist, Arborist/Arboriculturist, Ecologist, Forester, Biologist, Environmental Science, Environmental Management, or expert in related field to identify and differentiate different types of Platanus x Acerifolia cultivars / trees (Genus: Platanus; Species: Platanus x Acerifolia).

We aim to establish that within the genus Platanus there are the medium-sized Platanus x Acerifolia "Columbia" as opposed to the "Yarwood," "Bloodgood," and widely-known sycamore trees that are classified as large trees.

APPLICANT CAPABILITIES:
Applicant should be able to differentiate Platanus x Acerifolia Columbia trees from other Platanus x Acerifolia cultivars, namely "Yarwood" and "Bloodgood" located in the City of San Francisco.

Applicant should also be able to provide testimony in a court setting about Platanus Acerifolia Columbia and how they are distinct in size from both Platanus Acerifolia Bloodgood and Platanus Acerifolia Yarwood based upon scientific studies and/or data from research from the disciplines of BOTANY or ECOLOGY or BIOLOGY or related field.

Of most interest are sources that identify the Platanus Acerifolia Columbia variety as "medium-sized trees" as opposed to the "Bloodgood" and "Yarwood" varieties that are identified as "large-sized trees."

Applicant should be a certified master arborist.

Applicant should also hold a master's degree in BOTANY or ECOLOGY or BIOLOGY or ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE or ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT or ARBORICULTURE or URBAN FORESTRY or related field.

Applicant must be fluent in English and be able to present observations and findings both verbally and in writing during testing situations (i.e., court-reported examinations).

JOB REQUIREMENTS:
Applicant should be able to vigorously advance arguments, and appropriately address and thwart propounded arguments about Platanus Acerifolia.

For example, it is foreseeable that counterarguments from adverse parties may include "Platanus Acerifolia Columbia is not distinct in size from either Platanus Acerifolia Bloodgood or Platanus Acerifolia Yarwood."

Applicant must compellingly argue that Platanus Acerifolia Columbia is factually established as being a smaller cultivar than the Bloodgood and the Yarwood cultivars in support of the nursery quote: "'Columbia' was developed in 1984 to resist the diseases that so often plagued Platanus acerifolia."

For his/her findings, applicant should be able to draw on an initial arborist's Growth Rate Study (attached to Applicant's CV Reply).

The arborist Growth Rate Study already proves the Platanus Acerifolia Columbia as a smaller cultivar of the species Platanus x Acerifolia than both the Platanus Acerifolia Bloodgood and Platanus Acerifolia Yarwood.

Applicant may refer to an already compiled list of precedents of existing Platanus x Acerifolia in San Francisco that differentiate them based on cultivar in order to support the Growth Rate Study: Platanus Acerifolia growth rates are different and the ultimate size of Platanus Acerifolia Columbia with respect to Platanus Acerifolia Bloodgood and Platanus Acerifolia Yarwood is smaller.

Applicant may visit the sites of the exemplars in San Francisco.

Applicant should also be able to dispute any attempts at conflating varieties or cultivars of the Platanus x Acerifolia species that would deny the Bloodgood and the Yarwood cultivars have different growth rates than the Platanus Acerifolia Columbia.

DELIVERABLES:
Applicant must deliver his/her findings in a written assessment or scientific report that taxonomically proves that there exist different types of Platanus x Acerifolia within the same genus Platanus which correspond to different sizes at maturity, and thus not all Platanus x Acerifolia can be categorized as large trees.

The written assessment must contain substantive scholarly footnotes and exemplar citations.

In the written assessment, Applicant may cite the exemplars in the already compiled list of precedents of existing Platanus x Acerifolia in San Francisco.

The sources required for the written assessment must be relevant to the genus Platanus and the species Platanus x Acerifolia.

The sources must identify the 'Columbia' variety and differentiate the 'Columbia' variety from the 'Bloodgood' and 'Yarwood' varieties, specifically in size.

COMPENSATION:
Compensation will be based upon on Applicant's Written Assessment or Written Report, its inclusion of supporting footnotes from scientific studies, and its references to sites of the cultivars in San Francisco. $1,928.18.

Compensation will also be provided at $250/hr for any remote court appearances (not for Zoom) beyond 4 hours in length to provide testimony under oath as to variety of the species Platanus x Acerifolia and the "Columbia" as a medium-sized tree.

Contact: maher@ucla.edu

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