Shea Miller Email & Phone Number

Pinnacles National Park

Independently hike 5+ miles and drive government vehicles to radio track condors. Observe wild and captive condors for 5-6 hours at a time from an observation blind, Condor Facility, or remotely by video or trail camera still photos to monitor behavior and for signs of illness. Monitor and record condor nesting and feeding activities. Record detailed notes in remote field locations and transfer to multiple program databases. Act as the primary handler for six wild condors during veterinary examinations and wing tag and transmitter deployment. Assis in the preparation of volunteer materials and in volunteer training and monitoring. Underwent and passed CPR, bloodborne pathogen, and 4-wheel-drive trainings. Assist in 10+ carcass preparations and placements for condor baiting.

San Diego, California, United States

Present and support interactive, interpretive educational animal programs for all age groups. Transport animals (mammals, reptiles, birds, invertebrates, and amphibians) and maintain animal safety in crowds and public situations. Maintain clean, safe animal enclosures and prepare appropriate animal diets. Create and implement enrichment routines for animals. Socialize new animal ambassadors. Train and supervise new volunteers and interns in animal care and public speaking.

San Diego, California, United States

Provide guest service by greeting guests, providing directions/general information and maintaining crowd control as needed. Check various forms of admission and applicable identification, and utilizes variety of tools to maintain proper attendance counts. Provide special event support. Respond to guest inquiries and refer questions/concerns to Guest Services/Duty Manager as appropriate.

Channel Islands, California

Worked to monitor the population of the endemic Island Fox on Santa Cruz Island. Performed 40+ independent fox workups in which whisker, scat, parasite, and blood samples were collected, and vaccines and pit tags were administered. Assisted in over 10 Island Spotted Skunk workups by performing biopsy ear punches and pit-tagging. Input and organized data in The Nature Conservancy database.

Santa Barbara-Santa Maria Area

For alternating weeks, I and one or two other volunteers accompanied NPS technicians on Island Fox surveys taking place on Santa Rosa and San Miguel Islands. I assisted in setting and collecting traps on grid sites, as well as multiple facets of data collection of trapped foxes: blood, whisker and feces samples, weight and body condition, and reproductive status and age. I also assisted in tracking foxes via radio telemetry and replacing old collars and equipping new ones. Myself, the other volunteers and the technicians lived on the islands for week-long periods at a time in shared housing.

Thousand Oaks, Ca

Developing educational programs, acting as a counselor for science and art day camp, assisting in STARLAB presentations, and general administrative assistance.

Belize

For nine days, myself and eleven other students, all of whom were from either Wyoming or Oregon, were in Belize learning about ecology and conservation from the two biologists acting as our guides and chaperones, as well as local communities and leaders. For the first three days we lived in the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary, where we helped set and monitor camera traps and learned how the local Maya community, who established the park, lives in balance with the environment around them. From there, we went to the wildlife station in the Turneffe Atoll, where we studied the biological diversity of the coral reef and observed multitudes of species in their natural habitat. We each undertook in a "mini research project," which exposed us to the basic idea of what biologists do while in the field.