International Internships for Science Students
in partnership with San Diego State University
The Science Exchange Interns
Student Spotlight - Summer 2009
Monica Rosquillas, a ISCOR graduate at SDSU, worked
for 1.5 months in Akumal, Quintana Roo.Monica monitored sea turtle nesting
activity and led tours during night-time nesting patrols. During the day
she snorkeled for one hour taking photos of tourists interacting with
turtles in the bay, and administered a survey of tourists’ understanding
of sea turtle protection. Her paper discussed how international laws provide
different levels of protection for migratory species, and concluded that
there was no difference in the treatement of turtles between nationalities
or genders. Her work is published in the proceedings of the 2010 International
Sea Turtle Symposium held in India.
Sonia Woodbury, a graduate of the Audobon University
in MA, workedfor 3 months in La Paz, Baja California Sur with UABCS.
She helped with sea turtle tracking and net-capture projects and also
mapped sea grass and algae foraging habitat while SCUBA diving in Ojo
de Liebre, Magdalena Bay, Punta Abreojos, Laguna San Ignacio, and Isla
Espiritu Santos. She published an article in Spanish in a local La Paz
newspaper on UABCS Marine Lab research.
Jeff Treister, a Geography Major at SDSU, worked for
one month in Playa San Miguel, Costa Rica. He helped on night patrols
translocating sea turtles nests to the hatchery. During the day he takes
slope measurements of the beach and interviews local residents on beach
morphology changes over the last 10 and 20 years. His paper will discuss
human and natural mechanisms that may be changing the beach, including
sea level rise, and how turtle nesting may be affected.
Student Spotlight - Summer 2008
Daniel Soares - Environmental Science major at SDSU,
took slope and sand grain profiles to try to predict sea level rise effects
on the nesting beaches of concern at San Jose del Cabo, Mexico.
Sarah Maxey - Biology major at Chico State took sand
temperature and humidity at different beaches and elevations to try to
determine the impact of rising air temperatures on sand temperatures,
and subsequently, the survival of sea turtle eggs that are deposited about
50 cm below the surface.
Jeff Weaver - Environmental Science/Environmental Engineering
major at SDSU took slope and sand grain measurements, and, in addition,
collected and classified trash found on the beach.
Chris Hurtado - Business major/Art minor at SDSU measured
the relationships between air temperatures and nest temperatures, and
in his spare time helped build a fire pit/amphitheatre shaped like a turtle
at the research station.
The International Sea Turtle Symposium will be held in Brisbane Australia
February 17-19.
Each week the seaturtle.org hosts hot topics about marine turtle conservation.
Visit www.seaturtle.org/twist
for more information.
Every year the Grupo Tortuguero de las Californias (Sea Turtle Network
of the Californias) holds a meeting in Loreto, Mexico for all GT members
as well as researchers, international partners and conservationists. At
the annual meeting, members present results of research and monitoring
projects, and attend training workshops. For information about next year's
conference contact kama@propeninsula.org.
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For more information on becoming an intern or hosting an intern
contact The Science
Exchange.
