Summer 2025 Internship Application - Santa Cruz Mountains Reserve 
Ten Week Internships starting Summer Quarter 2025

2 unit Internships through the ENVS Internship Office or Volunteering Internship

Background

The Santa Cruz Mountain Reserve (SCMR) is a new collaboration between UC Santa Cruz’s Natural Reserve System and regional partners in the Santa Cruz Mountains. SCMR plans to help partnership agencies with wildlife research/inventory projects, invasive species monitoring, stream and wetland management, the impacts of wildfire and recreation on floral and faunal communities, and the potential for other projects related to the management of habitat and working lands in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Partnership agencies and lands within the SCMR include Cotoni-Coast Dairies (Bureau of Land Management), San Vicente Redwoods (Sempervirens Fund, Peninsula Open Space Trust, Save the Redwoods League, and the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County), Cascade Ranch (Pie Ranch), and various State Parks within the SC Mountains, with plans for more regional partners in the near future. Data collected from projects will help inform land management, conservation, and general trends in regional floral and faunal populations.

Internship Projects for Summer 2025:

Cascade Ranch Biodiversity Surveys:

Wetland and Grassland Plant Surveys

Bird Point Counts 

Mammal Camera Trapping and Surveys

Drone Surveys and Mapping

Pollinator Surveys 

Herp/ California red-legged frog (CRLF) monitoring

Pond Surveys (CRLF)

Acoustic Monitoring (CRLF)

Coverboard Surveys (Herps)

Visual Encounter Surveys (Herps)

Opportunistic Opportunities:

Monitoring Wildfire in Forests: Continuous Forest Inventory Plots 

Small Mammal Trapping

Requirements and Experience:

Project locations are around 30-40 minutes north of UCSC along Highway 1 and Empire Grade Rd. 

No vehicle is required, but having your own vehicle would provide you more flexibility on driving yourself/ carpooling with others. Otherwise, a SCMR work truck will be provided for intern crews to use.

No previous internship or work experience is required

Interns may be required to hike 1-3 miles through difficult terrain

Interns may work independently or with team members, and must check in weekly, good communication is a top priority for safety and coordination

Potential to encounter poison oak, ticks, venomous snakes, or other in the field challenges

Potential for continued data management and statistical development outside of the field

Students interested in independent research/senior theses are encouraged to participate in a 2-unit internship or volunteer position before starting a 5-unit independent research project.

Available Shifts:

6 hour shift one day per week Tuesdays - Fridays. Midday shifts (9am - 3:00pm) available. Some flexibility depending on morning and afternoon classes around beginning/end of the shift.

Bird Point Counts: If you are interested in conducting bird point counts, these shifts will be 6am - 12pm. Must have some 9am-3pm availability for 2-unit internships.

Options available Monday - Friday depending on intern availability.

Application Process:

Please fill out the application below if you are interested in working at SCMR!

Once you have filled out the application, expect an email from NRS Staff (Admin. Director, UCSC Natural Reserves - Gage Dayton - ghdayton@ucsc.edu; or Director of the Santa Cruz Mountains Reserve - Chad Moura - cwmoura@ucsc.edu) for further instruction and details.

If you have any questions, please email me at cwmoura@ucsc.edu

There are staffing changes for SCMR so students can fill the application out now but expect to hear back closer to end of Spring Quarter. Thank you for your patience and understanding.


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Email *
Name *
Year of Study at UCSC *
Tuesday Availability *
Required
Wednesday Availability *
Required
Thursday Availability *
Required
Friday Availability *
Required
Monday Availability (Make-Up/ Opportunistic Data Entry Hours Only) *
Required
There are several routes for SCMR internship opportunities, including surveys and monitoring of forest vegetative communities, amphibians and reptiles, mammals, and birds. Please select what type of internship you are most interested in (select one or multiple options below). *
Required
Work sites are around 20-30 minutes from campus in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Transportation is provided via our SCMR Tacoma. However, in case the work truck is not available, would you be willing to carpool to work sites or would you prefer to drive yourself? *
Required
If you need a ride/carpool or are willing to drive a carpool with someone else, where do you generally live (i.e. Santa Cruz, Felton, Aptos, San Jose, etc.)?  (This is so we can coordinate ride shares).
Optional: Describe any special circumstances or accommodations you may need below (1 to 2 sentences):
Optional: What are you generally interested in? Write 1 or 2 sentences describing your interests. Some prompts: What taxa would you like to work with (birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, invertebrates, fish, plants, etc.)? What type of work are you interested in (restoration ecology, learning wildlife techniques, land management, fire ecology, agroecology, etc.)? What skills are you interested in developing (general field competency, stats, research/study design, writing, public speaking, etc.)?
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