Don't worry- you are not behind in any way!!

I highly recommend reaching out to the people who you admire and/or who have careers similar to what you would like to be in, and asking them questions/having informational interviews with them. Meanwhile, there are a good number of entry-level paid internships and paid seasonal positions in wildlife management/monitoring if you have the ability to tap into those. I recommend visiting the Texas A&M Job Board (https://wfscjobs.tamu.edu/job-board/) for a comprehensive list of most opportunities. This is largely for US-based positions though, and I'm not sure where you're located.

Also, if research interests you, look into graduate programs in wildlife-related topics - there are often scholarships or teaching assistantships available to help get you through grad school.