Online interactive internship

A new program designed to enable learning key wildlife and research skills from afar.
( Key skills include learning otter ecology and behaviour, analysing camera trap data, writing a literature review and science communication. )

Modules


Module 1 (Learning Otter behaviour through data analysis) :

Topic: Behavior analysis of the Smooth-coated otter by looking at camera trapping footage. (We will be sharing a large amount of camera trap data from Chorao island and neighbouring spots over different years and seasons).

Aim: 1) Learn to identify and characterize different behaviors presented
2) Convert qualitative information into quantitative data
3) Create an ethogram based on 1) and 2)
4) Collate the data and present key findings

Eg. Of questions that can be answered include:
·Interactions between pups and family members.
·Disturbances at the site.
·Resting Behaviour
·Behaviour differences during different sets of seasons

Module 2 (Literature review - 2500 words) :

Topic: Biology and Behaviours of the Smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata)

Aim:
1) To collate all the know information that there is published on the subject.
2) Pinpoint the data gaps and questions that need to be answered in the future
3) See if there are any significant differences reported in the behavior and biology of the species in different parts of its range.

Module 3 (Science communication : Presentations/Debate) :

There will be 3 presentations/debates over the course of the internship, one every week on a Friday (20 mins time limit). This will be on a webinar style. The final presentation will be about the key findings of the literature study and data analysis at the very end. Topics will be given every week for the succeeding presentation, these may range from environment, wildlife, ethics or outside of the immediate scope. The idea is to learn to communicate science effectively to a general or a specialised audience, be able to research on topics outside of the scope of regular work and build opinions based on data.

* Please note some specifics of the modules may change depending upon the interests of the intern and the scope of requirement of Wild Otters.

Supervision


1. The internship will be supervised by Dr Katrina Fernandez, Director at Wild Otters and a member of the IUCN Otter Specialist Group, who will be having direct interaction with the interns every week.

2. Each intern will be assigned a Research Associate who will oversee their work and clarify doubts on a day to day basis (recommended time is to touch base with RA atleast 3 times a week.)

Training sessions


1. There will be a total of six sessions by the Wild Otters team (one each on Tuesdays and Thursdays) every week. These will cover Otter Ecology & Field Methods, Mangroves, Conflict, Science Communication, Illegal Trade and Professional Development/Jobs.

2. Wild Otters will be making available a repository of not only raw data for analysis but a bunch of resources including research papers and reports for the purpose of the internship.

Certificate


1. A certificate will be provided to all interns who complete the program successfully.

2. Any future recommendation is solely dependent on the performance of individual interns.

Registration


The program will commence in batches, the next batches will be from 1 June - 21 June & 22 June - 12 July, 2020.

The cost of the program is INR 12,500 (USD 187). ( If paying via PayPal, please make the payment to [email protected], else bank transfer/UPI details will be shared over email )

For registration or any queries, please write an email to [email protected]