Every summer, the Duke Lemur Center brings 25 interns to learn and work across all departments. Animal care, enrichment, research, fossil primates, development and education interns spend 10 weeks gaining firsthand experience in care, management and engagement. Here, education intern Kaitlynn Lamm shares some of her experience.
July 21, 2015 — My job description will tell you that I lead tours and work in the gift shop. There is a lot of that, but most of my days are made up of much, much more than that.
Take today for example.
I come in around 10am so things are already in full swing by the time my shift starts. I check people in for their tours, answer the phone, return voicemails, and help keep the gift shop stocked- all before my tour at 11! Today was unique because I went to a special seminar instead of doing my usual 11 o’clock tour. Duke Lemur Center (DLC) interns have a great opportunity in what’s called our weekly seminar series. We hear presentations from expert keepers, researchers, and biologists about what is going on in their field that might be relevant to us. For example, today we heard from Dr. David Samson about his sleep cognition research and Lydia Greene about how complex a lemur’s sense of smell is. I know this is beneficial for behavior and research interns, but it was also helpful for me in the education department. I can use this information on future tours to better answer questions or help explain how lemur scent marking works and why different species of lemurs sleep at different times of night and day.
I do have a tour this afternoon that I am happy to lead. With every tour, I get the unique opportunity to share my knowledge about these amazing animals, and how they can make a difference in people’s lives.
Being an education intern is an awesome opportunity because every day presents a new challenge that helps me grow as both a student and a person.
Kaitlynn Lamm is a senior at North Carolina State University pursuing a degree in Zoology along with minors in English and Wildlife Science and a certificate in Global Perspectives.
