• Panama City Lab Home
• About the Panama City Lab
  • Staff
  • History
  • Facility
• Library
  • Staff Publications
  • Print Journals
• Education and Outreach
• Fisheries Biology
  • Age and Growth
  • Otolith Guide
  • Staff
• Reef Fish Survey
  • Staff
  • Fishery Independent Surveys
  • Methodology & Gear
  • Habitat Mapping
  • Internships
• Marine Protected
  • Staff
  • MPA Projects
  • West Florida
  • South Atlantic
  • Pulley Ridge
  • Oculina
  • South Atlantic Deep Coral HAPC
  • Other Projects
  • Publications
  • Links
• Observer Programs
  • Gillnet Observer Program
  • Bottom Longline Observer Program
• Protected Species
  • Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
  • Protect Dolphins Campaign
• Sharks
  • Staff
  • Research Areas
  • Shark Tagging Program
  • Interns and Internship
  • Publications
  • Related Links

Reef Fish Surveys Team

Internships

Internship positions are available throughout the year for current undergraduates or recent university graduates to work with the Reef Fish Survey Sampling Group.

Interns will participate in a fishery-independent reef fish survey, using stationary video camera arrays and traps to monitor population relative abundances.  This survey takes place in depths of 10 to 50 m, from waters offshore of Destin, FL to Crystal River, FL.  Camera and traps will be deployed on natural, hard bottom reefs during day trips aboard the 36’ Research Vessel Harold B., as well as multiple 5-7 day trips aboard a larger research vessel.  Other opportunities include participating in ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) video sampling.  This entails helping use a live view remote controlled vehicle to collect video information on fish community structure, relative abundance, and size structures. In the field, interns aid staff biologists in handling underwater video equipment, identifying, measuring, and tagging fish, handling a variety of marine electronics and data gathering equipment, and will become familiar with several sampling and data analysis techniques.

While the summer time is the height of our field season, there are plenty of opportunities in the winter for interns to get involved in field work.  Along with the ROV and hook and line sampling, interns will have an opportunity to participate in side scan sonar mapping.  This project involves towing a high definition side scan sonar on single day and multi day trips in order to find, classify, and measure areas of natural hard bottom. 

When not in the field, interns participate in processing of fish samples, reading videos for fish counts, measuring fish through Geometric software, processing sonar data by classifying and measuring hard bottom.  Interns will also have the opportunity participate with other laboratory research groups.