General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences
Drawn directly from OPM FedScope (June 2026), this page tracks headcount, average salary, tenure, and pay comparison for the General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences occupation series (code 0401).
The verdict
In the Biological Sciences Group family, General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences counts 23,662 employees, a major federal occupation at 1.2% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount edged down from the prior period; pay averages $124,641, which pays near the federal-wide average.
- Headcount change
- -0.5%
- Pay change
- +0.1%
- Avg tenure
- 14 yrs
- Rank in family
- #1 of 31
FedScope read on General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences (dense series)
On pay, the move between reporting periods was a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. On length of service, this series shows a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career. Headcount moved down versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.
General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences sits inside the Biological Sciences Group family (code 04), which contains 31 related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Biological Sciences Group family. The Biological Sciences Group family totals 67,961 employees, and General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences accounts for 34.8% of them. Its average salary ranks in the top half (61st percentile) of pay among Biological Sciences Group occupations.
Salary context · rich-pay series
How General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
$124,641
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
+6.2%
Where General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences ranks on rich federal pay
General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences earns more on average than 71% of federal occupation series (384 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences.
Related Occupations in Biological Sciences Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forestry Technician | 11,090 | $61,659 | 8.7 yrs |
| Wildland Fire Management | 9,667 | $64,457 | 7 yrs |
| Biological Science Technician | 5,212 | $56,618 | 8.9 yrs |
| Soil Conservation | 4,101 | $89,391 | 13.8 yrs |
| Wildlife Biology | 1,868 | $95,468 | 16.3 yrs |
| Fish Biology | 1,629 | $116,550 | 16.2 yrs |
| Microbiology | 1,629 | $143,306 | 16.3 yrs |
| Forestry | 1,626 | $88,902 | 15.1 yrs |
| Ecology | 989 | $122,664 | 16.1 yrs |
| Rangeland Management | 692 | $88,317 | 14.6 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences outside the Biological Sciences Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (23,662 here).
Similar rich average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($124,641 here).
Key takeaways
- Place General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Biological Sciences Group family occupations in the table above, or search current General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.