Skills
41 skills are associated with this occupation.
0 skills selected
Essential knowledge
4 skills
Essential skills / competences
28 skills
Optional knowledge
0 skills
No skills in this section.
Optional skills / competences
9 skills
Overview
Zoo section leaders manage a team of zoo keepers and organise daily animal care, exhibit routines and long-term species work within one section of a zoo.
In job descriptions, look for animal care leadership, keeper schedules, species management, enclosure routines, staff management, budgeting, welfare checks and coordination with other zoo colleagues.
Explore this occupation
Open in Job ExplorerWhat the work can involve
Zoo section leaders split time between animal areas, keeper coordination and planning. They check daily care, feeding, enclosure routines and longer-term species or exhibit needs for one section.
Skills and specializations
Useful strengths include animal care judgement, team leadership, rota planning, welfare observation, exhibit organisation and clear handover with veterinarians, curators and zoo keepers.
Salary context
Salary context is shaped by section size, staff responsibility, species complexity, budget involvement, visitor-facing exhibits and whether the role includes recruitment or wider zoo planning.
Career paths
A path often starts in zoo keeping or aquarist work and moves into senior keeper, lead keeper, section leader or curator support roles with broader species responsibility.
Good to know
Check whether a vacancy names the animal section, keeper team size, budget duties, welfare routines, enclosure work and how decisions are shared with veterinary or curator staff.
Editorial note
This guide is editorial career context. It is not official labour-market statistics or role-specific salary data.
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Alternative labels
Occupation group
Pet groomers and animal care workers (5164)
Source facts
| ESCO URI | http://data.europa.eu/esco/occupation/62204bd8-98b5-418f-b189-7333904cbde7 |
|---|---|
| ESCO code | 5164.10 |
| ISCO group | 5164 |
| Concept type | Occupation |