Postcards from the Field: Cara Copeland

Shell Conservation Intern Cara Copeland

Hi all!

Growing up in Northern Ontario, I spent my childhood climbing trees, looking for animals (toads were a favourite!) and generally exploring my surroundings. Fortunately, that awe inspired by the natural world never wore off, and it led me to a wildlife biology degree at the University of Guelph.

Beaton Property, Northern Bruce Peninsula, Ontario

When I found out about the Shell Conservation Internship Program with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), I jumped at the opportunity. As the intern for both Midwestern and Central Ontario, I get to help protect and steward some beautiful and important habitats. I have worked everywhere from the large tracts of upland deciduous forest in Happy Valley just north of Toronto to the globally rare alvars of the Northern Bruce Peninsula. On one particularly memorable day on the peninsula, I heard a rattling noise and looked down to see an Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake about three feet in front of me, with its tail up in the air! Needless to say, I got my own tail out of there pretty quickly!

The great thing about this internship is the combination of hands-on field work and exposure to the planning side of stewardship (for example, seeing the process of writing a property management plan). In addition to my improved field skills, I think that I will come away from this summer much better prepared to enter the workforce, with a sense that I have made a positive contribution to the world.

What’s up next for me? There might be a master’s degree sometime in my future, but for now, I’m going to pursue a career in ecology and continue doing my bit to conserve our beautiful Canadian landscapes!

All the best,

Cara Copeland