Job Type: Paid Internship
Salary Details: Weekly stipend $245, lodging provided
Deadline: Apr 21, 2023

The Agroecology program at Archbold Biological Station (ABS) is seeking an intern (6-9 months) to assist with a funded project that will address how land management and grazing regime interact to affect grassland ecosystem services under future precipitation scenarios. The project will be conducted on our 10,500-acre cattle ranch in south-central Florida (Buck Island Ranch). We are a dynamic lab with a diverse group of people spanning early to mid-career researchers. We usually have at least 4 interns at a time. The intern will be supervised for the primary rainfall manipulation project by the research assistant, Emily Anderson, and by Dr. Elizabeth Boughton for an independent research project based on the intern’s interests.

Internship highlights
Buck Island Ranch is both an operational cattle ranch and an experimental field station, with a heavy focus on applied ecology. We are thinking both locally and globally. We are part of the Long-Term Agroecosystem Research Network (LTAR, US wide) and the nutrient network (NutNet, worldwide). See our two documentaries about Archbold Biological Buck Island Ranch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6_WhY3aZB0, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGV_G6dnYHg)

Interns will:

  • Work 20 hours per week assisting with field and lab projects, typically but not always Monday – Friday.
  • Dedicate remaining time to designing and implementing an independent research project that fits within our research program, with a report and a presentation at the end of internship.

Who should apply?

  • Ideal for recent graduates with a Bachelors degree in biology, environmental science or any related field.
  • Students interested in applied science who contemplate non-academic positions such as Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
  • Students interested in pursuing a graduate degree in applied ecology, wetland ecology, rangeland ecology.

Requirements and internship responsibilities

  • Highly motivated and enthusiastic about living and working in a rural field-station setting. A valid Driver’s license and own transportation for personal activities is required.
  • Respectful of others, as multiple interns will share lodging together.
  • Detail-oriented with respect to following sampling protocols and managing data.
  • High tolerance for the extreme heat and humidity that prevail during late spring through summer in southern Florida.
  • Experience with livestock care, building, construction, and fencing is a plus, but not required
  • Previous experience conducing independent research is a plus, but not required

Duties will include a combination of the following:

  • Assist with construction of rainout shelters and irrigation systems (building experience is helpful, but not required if you are willing to learn)
  • Assist with data collection on aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP), forage nutritive value, and plant species composition in response to precipitation and grazing treatments
  • Assist with weighing and drying biomass, grinding biomass and preparing samples for tissue analysis
  • Assist with maintenance of rainout shelters
  • Assist with managing implementation of grazing intensity treatments
  • Assist with data entry
  • Assist with care of small cattle herd
  • Possible opportunities – if schedule allows – to assist on other projects on the ranch including, seed bank and seed rain experiments, invasive species control, water and soil sampling, groundwater well monitoring, basic chemistry analysis, eddy covariance tower maintenance, and weather station maintenance.

Benefit for the successful intern

  • Interns will be trained in every aspect of scientific research, from project choice, experimental design, and statistical analysis to oral and written presentations. This will prepare interns for graduate school and/or higher-level report writing required by government agencies. Some interns have published their projects in peer-reviewed journals.
  • Opportunity to get more familiar with advanced technology.
  • Experience in applied ecology.
  • Experience life on a cattle ranch in a collaborative environment.

Compensation

  • Interns receive lodging at Buck Island Ranch (11 miles away from ABS).
  • Weekly stipend of $245.

HOW TO APPLY
To apply please email the following as a single PDF to Emily Anderson (eanderson@archbold-station.org).

  • A recent CV.
  • A cover letter stating research interests and a description of previous research experience.
  • The contact information and description of your relationship for three references.

Deadline to apply is April 21st, 2023 for a desired starting date in early June 2023.