Marine Biology/ Environmental Conservation/
Fishery Management Internship
The Key Largo Angler’s Club, Key Largo, Florida Job Brief
On a Caribbean hardwood hammock at the edge of the Everglades, the Biscayne National Park, The Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge and the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, the Key Largo Angler’s Club maintains a small park and lakes system on its private land. We have about ten acres of parkland containing a man-made 2.5 acre/8,000,000-gallon isolated water system that mirrors the local estuarine ecosystem. The five tidal brackish lakes are interconnected with channels and waterfalls and are home to an extensive catalog of native South Florida flora and fauna. Our mission, through careful and scientifically informed management, is the preservation of this successful ecosystem and to maintain the beauty of the park. Our goal is to inspire environmental stewardship through education, research and enjoyment. Our intern will be housed on-site for a nominal fee and assist our team in a wide range of tasks involving maintenance, operations and species management. You will get wet, you will get dirty; you will balance your time between your laptops and dealing with algea, microscopes and buckets of fish – you will be living in the Florida Keys and you will have fun!
• This internship requires a minimum commitment of at least six consecutive weeks May – October, four weeks November – April, and includes some evening and weekend shifts.
• This is an unpaid internship. You will be responsible for coordination and cost of travel to and from the Club. You may bring your own car.
• Additionally, should you decide to create and execute an individual program or special project while you are here we can work with your school to qualify for potential class credit.
Duties and Responsibilities
• Aquasystem upkeep: All waterways and the species within them, rebuilding staging zones and maintaining pumps and pipes. Primary goal is to sustain natural ecosystem balance through monitoring conditions and data interpretation and react with physical and chemical and biological solutions. The focus of our efforts is to continue to learn and use more physical and biological solutions rather than chemical solutions.
• Maintain and balance water quality: Nutrient/O2/pH/salinity/bacteria level data collection and recording, using natural native species as much as possible to sustain healthy balance.
• Sustain and foster our fishery: We support 20+ species of local fish like bonefish, tarpon, nurse sharks, snappers, parrotfish, groupers, needlefish, grunts, damselfish, spadefish, sergeant majors, moray eels, stingray, crabs, lobster, etc. with hopes of adding additional species as permissible.
• Record and report various data in spreadsheet form using excel and other programs.
• Assist with regular grounds maintenance, including but not limited to: Cutting brush and clearing plots and short trails, pruning and trimming, algae removal, rearing and transporting both plant and animal species.
• Assist with special events and activities, help develop an interactive educational program, attend various association meetings.
• Maintain a professional relationship with Club members, staff, and volunteers.
Qualifications
Training provided: Water sampling and quality control techniques, working with volunteers and Club employees, field and lab sample analysis, basic data and handling analysis, proper species capture, transport and release procedures.
Qualifications include:
• College degree in process (or completed within the last 12 months) in fisheries management, marine biology, ecology, conservation, environmental science, parks and recreation management, oceanography, or another relatable area of study. Applicants with other backgrounds may also apply.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Self-motivated, able to work independently or as part of a team.
• Strong computer skills and proficient knowledge of Microsoft Office. Must bring your own laptop.
• Publishing/website development skills are a plus as we continue to modernize our public face.
• Excellent organizational skills.
Physical Requirements
This can be a physically demanding internship. Physical requirements include but are not limited to the following capabilities:
• Lifting and transporting heavy objects. (A full five-gallon bucket weighs over 40 pounds.)
• Remaining on your feet for extended periods.
• Prolonged exposure to Southern Florida’s unpredictable weather.
• Strong swimming skills, including the ability to swim underwater – tasks may require aiding in subsurface exploration or maintenance, and there will be local small boat trips.
• The fortitude and willingness to do these activities on a daily basis.
Availability Commitment
We are happy to work with the successful applicant to structure an internship program that will satisfy specific academic requirements. Aside from an academic schedule if applicable, you are expected to maintain open availability in the 40 hours per week range as we must work with nature’s schedule and unpredictable weather.
Legal Contract
There will be an official Internship Agreement executed between the Intern and The Club. This Internship is conditioned on The Club receiving a satisfactory background check on Intern.
To Apply
Please send a detailed letter of interest (explaining how your interests and goals align with the mission of the KLAC Parks Program, and how an internship here would benefit you), a resume/CV, and contact information for three professional or academic references to the program director, Ben Cart, at [email protected] You may also call Ben directly at (330)565-8521 with any questions about the program.
Additional information about the park is available at https://klac.org/Park_and_Lakes
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