<div dir="ltr"><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">2015 Whitlock
Internship: Mapping Cape Cod’s Natural Communities</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The Whitlock Internship provides opportunities for individuals who are
pursuing or have recently earned a graduate level degree. The internship is a
full-time, funded position for 10-12 weeks.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Under the supervision of APCC staff, the 2015 Whitlock Intern will conduct
field surveys to document and map natural communities on Cape Cod through
identification of characteristic plant species, topography, hydrology and soils.
The data will be added to our online interactive map of natural communities on
Cape Cod which is available online as part of the update of APCC’s <i>Cape Cod Critical Habitats Atlas</i> (<a href="http://apcc.org/chm/index.html">http://apcc.org/chm/index.html</a>). Information on natural communities will ultimately
be incorporated into the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ natural communities
mapping program subject to NHESP review and approval.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Background</span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In 1990, APCC published the <i>Cape Cod
Critical Habitats Atlas</i> that identified sensitive habitats and natural
resources on Cape Cod, using a combination of maps and narrative. Information
on wetlands, rare species habitat, coastal landforms and other sensitive
habitat was presented for each of the 15 towns on Cape Cod. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0in"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Since 1990,
new approaches for classifying and understanding habitats have been developed.
One of these is the classification of habitats based on native plant
communities, the “natural communities approach” developed by the Massachusetts
Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, or NHESP (Swain and Kearsley,
2001, “Classification of Natural Communities in Massachusetts”). </span>Natural communities are defined by NHESP
as “…. <i>assemblages of species that occur together in space and time. These
groups of plants and animals are found in recurring patterns that can be
classified and described by their dominant physical and biological features</i>.” In the field, natural communities are
identified by characteristic assemblages of plant species as well as topography,
hydrology and soils. Statewide, there
are approximately 105 different natural communities. </p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0in"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0in"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Using this
approach, natural communities in many areas of Massachusetts have been mapped,
but most of Cape Cod’s natural communities remain unmapped. To fill this gap
and update the 1990 atlas, APCC began mapping natural communities on the Cape. During 2012 and 2013, APCC interns mapped natural
communities and documented survey locations using a hand-held GPS unit. In 2014
the APCC Whitlock Intern created an online, accessible, interactive map of the
natural communities to increase awareness of the Cape’s diversity of habitats, promote
environmental stewardship and improve natural resource protection. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0in"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Continuing on the work conducted in 2012 and 2013, the goal of the 2015
internship will be to focus on mapping plant communities on Cape Cod using
field surveys. Some interpretation of
aerial photographs may be utilized. </span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Internship Duties</span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The intern will use the field methodology for documenting natural communities
that was developed by the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, entitled “<i>A Guide to the Natural Communities of
Eastern Massachusetts</i>” (2004) as well as that described by NHESP in Swain
and Kearsley (2001). NHESP field forms
will be utilized to document natural communities. A hand-held GPS will be used to document
survey locations and a digital camera will be used to photographically document
sites and natural communities. A desktop
computer, GPS and camera will be provided by APCC. The information collected will be organized
into a GIS database and shared with NHESP. The deliverables will include hard copies
and electronic documents containing all field notes and data, a brief written
report, and GIS database entries.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Qualifications include the following: </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Earned or pursuing a graduate level degree in botany. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Highly skilled in identifying plant species in the
field. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Working knowledge of northeastern U.S. native plant
species, particularly for southeastern Massachusetts. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Familiarity with Massachusetts Natural Heritage and
Endangered Species Program’s Natural Communities classification system is a big
plus. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Experience with use of handheld global positioning
system (GPS) for mapping, USGS topo maps, other maps and aerial photographs,
Ability to organize information and maintain accurate records,</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Ability to write clear and accurate descriptions of
environmental conditions. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Ability to drive to locations throughout Cape Cod and
possession of a valid driver’s license.</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Ability to traverse natural terrain.</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-left:0.75in"><span style="font-family:Symbol">·<span style="font-stretch:normal;font-size:7pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">
</span></span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Ability to synthesize information on plants,
topography, soils and hydrology a plus</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Housing is not included in any APCC internship program. APCC will assist
interns in locating housing, but it is ultimately the responsibility of the
intern to obtain housing. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Interested students should submit a resume and letter of interest outlining
their qualifications, relevant coursework and career goals to </span><a href="mailto:info@apcc.org"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">info@apcc.org</span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">. </span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">For
more information, please visit our website, </span><a href="http://www.apcc.org/"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">www.apcc.org</span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">. Applications received prior to March
13, 2015, will be given preference.</span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </span><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"></span></p></div><div><br></div><br clear="all"><div><div class="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div>~~~~~~~</div><div>Tara Nye</div>Biologist<div>Association to Preserve Cape Cod<br>PO Box 398<br>Barnstable, MA 02630<br>508-362-4226<br><a href="http://www.apcc.org" target="_blank">www.apcc.org</a><br></div></div></div></div>
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