Raptor Caretaker and Natural History Museum Intern
May - August 2019 • Haines, AK
What I liked
I liked the variety of skills learned on the job. At a small non-profit, I was responsible for a variety of tasks and had the freedom to make a difference in lasting ways. I learned how to care for and train a variety of avian ambassadors, create content in the natural history museum and give presentations to guests, construct a boardwalk and a shed, and perform a variety of other duties as necessary. This diversity kept things interesting and engaging.
What I wish was different
Unfortunately, partly due to the variety of tasks i was consistently performing, I had less of an opportunity to specialize and focus my skills on one area. In particular, I would have liked to have more time to build relationships with the avian ambassadors and therefore develop more complex behaviors in training sessions.
Advice
I highly recommend this experience for anyone who is interested in animal care and/or museum work. I also advise being prepared for hard work in variety of tasks, and accepting many responsibilities and taking your own initiative.
