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My Bald Head Island Internship Experience

My Bald Head Island Internship Experience. Mary Mack Gray. Background.

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My Bald Head Island Internship Experience

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  1. My Bald Head Island Internship Experience Mary Mack Gray

  2. Background Bald Head Island Conservancy was established in 1983 in order to protect the population of nesting loggerhead sea turtles that visit the island every summer.It has since grown to encompass all island wildlife, including white-tailed deer, painted buntings, and American alligators.The Conservancy now acts to encourage research and scientific discovery and to promote education of the island’s unique wildlife and habitat.

  3. Internship Program • 9-15 Interns accepted each year • 2 Wildlife Interns, 2 Education Interns, 1 Kayaking Intern, the rest Sea Turtle Interns • All interns live in a house at the Conservancy on Bald Head Island • “Day-time” and “night-time” interns

  4. Program cont’d Minimum 2.5 GPA required to apply Must submit official transcript and relevant coursework Must submit a letter of interest in the form of an essay If accepted, must participate in phone interview May apply for more than one internship PAID Internship – stipend of $1200, paid bi-weekly Work closely with prestigious scientists and professionals from all fields of study Work week is approximately 30 hours, depending on internship

  5. Wildlife Internship Description One of the many Osprey on the island. Photo by Mary Mack Gray • Conduct white-tailed deer and American alligator surveys at night • Assist in any wildlife rescues (birds, alligator relocation, etc) • Give a lecture to the general public once a week on the island’s herps (snakes, amphibians, alligators) • Control the growth of the invasive species, beach vitex

  6. Sea Turtle Internship Description Baby Loggerheads rescued from a hatched nest. Photo by Mary Mack Gray • Patrol the entire beach every night from 9PM to 6AM looking for nesting sea turtles and caging their nests, getting measurements, and microchipping the mothers. • Conduct nest excavations once a nest has hatched • Check on nests nightly to ensure no predator disruption • Build runways to the ocean once it’s time for a nest to hatch. Make sure all baby turtles reach the water. • Lead turtle walks at night to educate the public on the nesting process and sea turtles in general.

  7. Education and Kayaking Internships Description Kayaking Description • Education interns are involved with running the children’s camps that operate at the Conservancy Monday through Friday, 9AM-12PM. • Also responsible for leading Maritime Forest hikes, Crabbing and Castnetting classes, BHI After Dark, and Beachcombing classes • Work closely with children ranging from ages 5-13 • Learn about different shells and invertebrates found on the shore, all flora found in the Maritime forest, and become a castnetting pro! • Lead Kayaking tours through the creeks of Bald Head Island 4-5 days a week • Trips are usually 2 hours long. Wildlife interns assist with these trips. • Tell the public about flora and fauna found in the creeks and learn the importance of the marsh in a barrier island • Help with other programs such as BHI After Dark

  8. Program cont’d Marsh of BHI. Photo by Mary Mack Gray • All interns do the work of another intern at some point or another, so even if you are an education intern, you will have plenty of opportunity to assist on a nightly turtle patrol or wildlife patrol! • Each intern must learn the job of other interns and help out around the Conservancy doing odd-and-end jobs. BHIC is a non-profit, so everyone has to pull some weight! • Each intern also helps in Turtle Central, the Conservancy gift shop, at least once every two weeks • Each intern also sits at the “Information Center” desk, where they answer phone calls and sign up people for programs. The Conservancy is funded almost entirely by our summer programs and donations, so this is an important job!

  9. Bald Head Island Photo by Mary Mack Gray • Bald Head Island is a barrier island meaning it is very important during tropical storms (and for many other reasons) and it gets the brunt of the force during such storms. Its extensive marsh helps in controlling flooding and it creates an ecosystem with a diverse array of wildlife • Much of the wildlife on BHI could not survive anywhere else. The painted bunting will migrate to BHI during the summer to nest. This is the only place in the US that these birds will nest – they normally reside in Cuba • The American alligator is a threatened species. These are docile and fascinating creatures that are typically misunderstood and would not survive long in an area that is not as passionate about preservation as BHI • The lack of light pollution on BHI is one of the main reasons we are so successful with Sea turtle nests and survival rates. Lights from beach houses confuse and disorient both nesting sea turtles and the babies once they hatch and try to make their way to the ocean. BHI has a strict light policy. • BHI is also home to one of the only remaining pristine stretches of Maritime forest in the WORLD. This habitat is found in Florida but BHI is the only place it is found north of FL. In times like these when many unique ecosystems are disappearing, it is very profound to be able to interact with one of the last remaining expanses of such a habitat.

  10. Independent Research Project • BHI is full of ongoing research projects conducted by schools such as UNCW and NC State. • Interns are encouraged to pursue their own independent research project involving anything they like on the island. Interns are also able to “dovetail” with research projects being conducted by visiting professors and staff at the Conservancy • Project topics range from nest protection methods (wire cages vs construction fencing) to red fox population dynamics

  11. Benefits of Interning Develop a close connection with prestigious and influential researchers and professionals, alone with other interns who come from all over the country. Plus, celebs!

  12. Meet cool wildlife!

  13. Be a part of something bigger Real research. Real change. Real results

  14. Learn relevant skills As an intern, you will learn a large number of marketable and resume-enhancing skills. Some examples are: Control of invasive and noxious species (beach vitex) Wildlife spotlighting surveys Research techniques Collecting samples from wildlife (sea turtle tagging and DNA collection) Interacting with endangered and threatened species Learning the inner-workings of a non-profit organization Naturalist skills, such as the identification of trees, birds, and other flora and fauna

  15. Live on the beach AND in the forest! BHI is a known resort island, with seasonal famous visitors such as Jim Gaffigan and Kate plus 8!

  16. Three words….Baby. Sea. Turtles. Photos by Mary Mack Gray, Andy Adams, and Andrew Niccum

  17. Never a boring moment… Interns were the winners again of the annual July 4th pie eating contest between the Conservancy and Public Safety Exhausted after playing ATV tag Ramses, the family opossum

  18. Questions? Mary Mack Gray Email: mgray4@ncsu.edu

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