Name: Allison
Gould
Class Year:
2021
Hometown:
Pittsburgh, PA
Internship:
Conservation and Science Volunteer Intern
Location:
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
Today was the last day of my internship at the Cleveland
Metroparks Zoo. This summer went by so quickly, but I am incredibly grateful
for all the wonderful people I was able to meet and for everything I have
learned! Since my last blog, a few things have stayed the same, but I have also
had plenty of new experiences!
Every Monday, I met with Kym Gopp to discuss my various
projects and just chat about how my internship was going. I also continued to
collect data for the Giraffe Space Use and Animal Visibility studies. For a few
weeks in June and July, I was also collecting data on the female Andean condor
for an Andean Condor Space Use monitoring study similar to the giraffe
research. I continued to attend the monthly Conservation and Science department
meetings, and one of our department meetings was followed by a team engagement
meeting where I learned about what the department is doing to make sure that
everyone feels engaged in the work they are doing and with other departments
within the zoo. Our weekly seasonal keeper/intern meetings with zoo staff were
ongoing as well. We had conversations with leaders in the zoo including the
head vet, lead animal curators, executive director, research curator, and
deputy executive director. Over the course of these meetings we learned about
the vet hospital and zoo veterinary care (and got a tour of the hospital),
Cleveland’s AAZK chapter, animal collection management, what it takes to run a
zoo, endocrinology research at the zoo, and professional development. These
meetings were very helpful in learning about all the different aspects of a zoo
and opening my eyes to the possibility of careers within the zoo
field.
Over the last few weeks, I was tasked with a variety of
projects that allowed me to get involved in many different areas of the Future
for Wildlife programs, mostly the Lion and Cheetah, Illegal Wildlife Trade, and
Andean Bear programs. I attended a Team Lion and Cheetah planning meeting for
World Lion Day which was held on August 10. We went over the last details for
the day and worked on wording for the on-site signage. I then volunteered on
World Lion Day at the biofact and conservation table. We had iPads out on the table,
and I showed guests the Snapshot Ruaha program and taught them how it works. I
then passed out cards with the Snapshot Ruaha link so the guests could
contribute to conservation at home too.
World
Lion Day photo ops - me with the lion mascot
For the Wildlife
Trafficking Alliance (WTA), a coalition under AZA, I helped Kym to develop a
list of “focus” species and taxa that are commonly trafficked, which WTA will
use on their website to inform the public. To compile the list, we conducted a
literature review of resources to justify the species and taxa we chose for the
list. Also on the illegal wildlife trade front, I wrote a proposal and problem
statement that Kym will submit for the Zoo to hold a Zoohackathon in the fall.
The Zoohackathon brings together students, coders, and wildlife advocates to
develop technology solutions that will help combat poaching and wildlife
trafficking.
A lot has been happening as far as Andean bears, too! I
just learned today that the Andean bear SAFE application was accepted and is
now an official AZA SAFE program!!! A few weeks ago, I compiled a list of
Andean bear engagement activities and programs that will be made accessible to
SAFE partners to engage zoo staff and the public in Andean bear conservation.
The list includes activities such as an Andean bear facial pattern matching
game, having a camera trap selfie station, and shade grown coffee tastings.
Many of these activities were also used during the first ever Andean Bear Day
at the Zoo on July 21. Unfortunately, I could not help on the day itself, but I
was quite involved in the planning process for Andean Bear Day. I went to two
Team Andean Bear meetings to work on planning the event. I was also in charge
of preparing the Make a Mask activity. Each Andean bear has its own unique
facial pattern and they are often referred to as the “masked bear.” Guests,
specifically kids, visiting the Zoo on Andean Bear Day could make their own
Andean bear mask! After the supplies for the activity had been ordered, I cut
out the felt pieces in different shapes and patterns to be attached to the
masks and I created a few sample masks. From everything I heard, Andean Bear
Day went very well. Afterwards, Kym had me write up a summary of the day and
its activities, more detailed than the engagement list, that she will also be
able to share with SAFE partners and those who want to hold their own Andean
Bear Days in the future.
Example
of a mask and the felt shapes for the Make a Mask activity.
Certified
sustainable, shade grown coffee produced in the Andean bear range to highlight
the threat of habitat loss for Andean bears (used for coffee tastings and sold
in the Zoo gift shop).
As mentioned in my
last post, I worked on an independent research project. I had multiple research
planning meetings with Kym and Laura, a graduate research associate in our
office, to get everything for my project prepared and working properly. I
created a guest survey to collect data on and better understand the public’s feelings
and perceptions of zoos. I surveyed zoo guests for three weeks in July. The
questions covered the topics of zoo visitation, perceptions and feelings about
zoos, and knowledge of zoo professional accreditation, as well as general
demographic questions. Last week, I presented my findings to the C&S
department. The results showed that when people think about zoos, they think of
animals. However, their reasons for going to zoos are predominantly
entertainment-based. I also found that people rate zoo animal welfare on a
range of very good to somewhat poor and are critical of welfare in zoos, but
people rate zoo conservation efforts on a range from very effective to neutral and
have a hard time understanding exactly what conservation is and means. There
are many more results that I won’t go into now, but it was all very interesting
to learn. Conducting the survey and the research was itself a great learning
opportunity on how to write effective survey questions and conduct audience
research.
The
paper and iPad surveys I used for my data collection.
Every day at Cleveland
Metroparks Zoo was different and exciting. I will miss my time spent at the zoo
and with all the wonderful people of the Conservation and Science department.
Here is one last list of the exciting projects and events I was a part
of:
- Attended Kym’s lecture to a
Master’s class on primate conservation, specifically of the slow
loris.
- Compiled a report of the Cleveland
AAZK Chapter’s contributions to conservation projects from 2000 to
2016.
- Gave a short talk on the Zoo’s
conservation programs to visiting interns from Holden Arboretum and
Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
- Created a “FFW in the News”
newsletter highlighting the Zoo’s conservation partners to share with zoo
staff and members.
- Attended a brown
bag lecture by and had lunch with Thuy Nguyen, Training and Animal Rescue
Coordinator of the Asian Turtle Program in Vietnam.
Giving
a talk to visiting interns about the Zoo’s FFW conservation programs.
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