Marine biology was something I always wanted to study since I was a kid, and it feels pretty good doing the one thing I always wanted. The more I studied marine biology, the more I found that Elasmobranch research and conservation had been my choice of interest. Though the idea of working with sharks scared my friends and family, I knew it was the right thing for me.
I came across a research program called the South African Shark Conservancy (SASC). This program included everything I needed and I got the amazing opportunity to take on a Shark Research internship at SASC for 8 weeks!
So after a very long 15-hour flight and a 3-hour layover from New York to Johannesburg, I finally made it to SASC. This was my very first time traveling internationally on my own, and it was a little scary. When I finally made it to the airport in South Africa, I met the other interns that I would be spending my 8 weeks with, and I started to feel a lot more comfortable.
Its been two weeks since I arrived in South Africa, and so far the experience has been incredible. I’ve already learned and seen so much! During the week the other interns and I will travel back and forth to the lab. Within the past two weeks, I’ve noticed that there’s never a normal day in the lab. There is always so many unexpected things happening, from snorkeling in freezing conditions for sharks, to falling flat in your face just to find cool specimens for the lab. Seasickness on the boat has definitely caught me by surprise, but its so worth it when I see pods of hundreds of dolphins jumping out of the water.
The most exciting part of the past two weeks is amount of time I spend with sharks. I’ve learned things like handling and tagging sharks, taking a fin clip from the dorsal fin, taking measurements and weight, gastric lavage, and feeding. I’ve also learned many other things, like working with baited remote underwater video (BRUV).
I’ve been at the Shark Conservancy for two weeks and I’ve already experienced so much. This is only the beginning and theres so much more to come!