Animal biologist vs wildlife technician

The differences between animal biologists and wildlife technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an animal biologist and a wildlife technician. Additionally, an animal biologist has an average salary of $62,366, which is higher than the $33,462 average annual salary of a wildlife technician.

The top three skills for an animal biologist include genotyping, sops and lab equipment. The most important skills for a wildlife technician are GPS, hand tools, and harvest.

Animal biologist vs wildlife technician overview

	Animal Biologist	Wildlife Technician
Yearly salary	$62,366	$33,462
Hourly rate	$29.98	$16.09
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	13,114	9,809
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

Animal biologist vs wildlife technician salary

Animal biologists and wildlife technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Animal Biologist	Wildlife Technician
Average salary	$62,366	$33,462
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $93,000	Between $25,000 And $44,000
Highest paying City	-	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	-	New Hampshire
Best paying company	-	Boulder County
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between animal biologist and wildlife technician education

There are a few differences between an animal biologist and a wildlife technician in terms of educational background:

	Animal Biologist	Wildlife Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	Stanford University	Duke University

Animal biologist vs wildlife technician demographics

Here are the differences between animal biologists' and wildlife technicians' demographics:

	Animal Biologist	Wildlife Technician
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 46.2% Female, 53.8%	Male, 66.5% Female, 33.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 13.5% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 10.1% White, 56.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between animal biologist and wildlife technician duties and responsibilities

Animal biologist example responsibilities.

Manage detailed GLP laboratory manual daily.
Project require review of existing environmental data, identification of permitting requirements, wetland identification/delineation and sensitive and endanger species issues.
Perform research in immunology and virology as a part of the vaccine development division; develop and validate bioassays.

Wildlife technician example responsibilities.

Lead fish exclusion and relocation efforts, using backpack electro fishing gear.
Research new techniques to properly manage invasive species such a common carp.
Perform automated DNA and RNA extraction of clinical specimens.
Collect and process biological samples for epidemiology PCR and RT-PCR studies.
Work with other volunteers and sometimes independently to search for, identify and record GPS coordinates of invasive plant species.
Extract nematode specimens from soil samples, remount old nematode slides, and enter vital information into USDA nematode collection database.

Animal biologist vs wildlife technician skills

Common animal biologist skills

Genotyping, 44%
Sops, 35%
Lab Equipment, 16%
Animal Studies, 6%

Common wildlife technician skills

GPS, 9%
Hand Tools, 8%
Harvest, 7%
Data Entry, 6%
Wildlife Habitat, 6%
GRASS, 5%

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Animal Biologist
Animal Biologist vs Wildlife Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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