Sabrina Sorace, SCCF Sea Turtle Intern

Sabrina Sorace is a rising senior at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg. This summer, she is interning with the nighttime tagging program May 1 through August 1. This season, she’s helped tag more than 80 new turtles nesting on Sanibel. “Along with the numerous nesting turtles I have seen on patrol, being awake all night allowed me to see shooting stars, dolphins hunting along the shoreline, and even a juvenile alligator in the waves,” she said. After this internship, Sorace plans to finish her bachelor’s degree and “use the skills I have gained through this internship to pursue a career in sea turtle conservation.”

Joseph Young, SCCF Marine Lab Intern

Joseph Young is in his third year at Colorado State University, where he is double majoring in chemistry and biochemistry. “I have been fascinated by science from a young age,” said Young, who was inspired by his father, a forest service hydrologist and geology hobbyist. After taking an entry-level chemistry class in high school, “I was instantly hooked on the expansiveness of the field,” he recalled. “It seemed to offer more and more as I looked into career paths.” Growing up in Montrose, Colo., Young often vacationed in Fort Myers and Sanibel Island to visit family.

An SCCF Marine Lab Intern from May 17 through August 8, Young said he was surprised by the “many moving parts” that are “involved with running a lab and planning for fieldwork. Fieldwork has been my favorite part of my internship, whether it’s collecting water samples, counting oyster settlement, taking seagrass population surveys, or marking and counting sea turtle nests. It has been a fun experience.” The SCCF internship “has reinforced my decision to continue my work in getting my biochemistry degree,” he said.