Internship: Right Whale Ecology Program (RWEP) - Habitat

Center for Coastal Studies • Provincetown, MA

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Right Whale Ecology Program (RWEP) conducts long-term monitoring of North Atlantic right whale abundance, distribution, behavior, and prey in Cape Cod Bay and adjacent Massachusetts waters. The habitat intern will participate in research cruises as a marine observer, working alongside the photo-id intern and assisting the RWEP marine ecologist in zooplankton and environmental data collections. Lab responsibilities include zooplankton species identification and counts, archiving samples, data entry, and maintaining field equipment. Office responsibilities include database entry and may also assist in photo-analysis (matching right whale individuals to known animals using an online and in-house catalog).

Requirements

• A Bachelor’s degree, preferably in biological/ environmental sciences
• Good memorization skills and strong attention to details
• Basic computer literacy and experience using Microsoft Office programs (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)
• Experience working on boats, ability to withstand harsh elements for up to 10 hours at a time
• Not prone to serious seasickness
• Must be able to live and work well in a team
• Enthusiasm and willingness to learn field and lab-based research methods
• Ability to work well under pressure
• Must be available for the full five months
• Must be willing to work weekends, holidays and evenings as needed

Nice To Haves

• Plankton identification
• Microscopy experience
• Marine observer experience
• Not prone to seasickness
• A valid US driver’s license

Responsibilities

• Identification of marine mammals
• Collecting behavioral, environmental, and sightings data (other species, vessels, marine debris, and fishing gear)
• Zooplankton collection and identification
• Database entry and maintenance
• Maintaining vessel field equipment

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Intern