Curator of Australia & Rainforest

Job Title: Curator of Australia and Rainforest

Department: Animal Care and Welfare

Reports to: Vice President, Animal Care Operations

Status: Full-time, exempt

Work location: On-site at National Aquarium facilities in Baltimore, Maryland

Position Summary

The Curator of Australia and Rainforest leads animal care, staff, and day-to-day operations for Australia: Wild Extremes, Upland Tropical Rainforest, Hidden Life, Amazon River Forest, Puffin Habitat, Waterfront Park, and other assigned habitats. The portfolio includes a diverse collection of birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, invertebrates, plants, and select mammals. The Curator sets clear expectations for husbandry and welfare, develops staff, guides collection and habitat planning, and ensures that concerns receive timely decisions and follow-through. This role works closely with Animal Health, Facilities, Life Support Systems, and other teams to support safe, reliable habitats and the Aquarium's conservation and guest experience goals.

Key Responsibilities

Animal Care and Welfare

• Lead animal and plant care across assigned habitats, including nutrition, behavioral husbandry, habitat management, safe transport, acclimation, and population management, as applicable. • Use observations, records, welfare assessments, and professional judgment to identify concerns, evaluate outcomes, and improve care practices. Ensure staff monitor feeding, behavior, and signs of illness or injury and document changes. Escalate significant welfare, health, safety, or system concerns promptly. • Partner with Animal Health on preventive medicine, disease recognition, diagnostics, treatment plans, and health-related decisions; ensure animal care teams carry out assigned care and monitoring. • Develop collection and breeding or propagation recommendations for assigned species. Coordinate acquisitions, transfers, and dispositions with the Registrar, Animal Health, and Animal Care leadership through established approval processes. Oversee inventories and the documentation, permits, and coordination required for animal and plant acquisitions, transfers, and dispositions. • Maintain complete, timely records and ensure practices meet applicable laws, permit conditions, AZA accreditation standards, and Aquarium policies.

People Leadership

• Supervise Assistant Curators and provide direction and accountability for animal care and horticulture staff, volunteers, and interns in assigned areas. • Hire, onboard, coach, evaluate, and develop staff in partnership with Human Resources. Set clear goals, address performance concerns, and support succession and workforce planning. • Set work priorities and staffing plans that meet animal care, safety, and operational needs, including coverage during incidents and other time-sensitive situations. • Build a respectful, collaborative culture that encourages sound judgment, communication across teams, and timely escalation of concerns.