Mary Grande knew that when she conducted research on endangered seabirds last summer she would have to wear some rather unflattering headgear. But it came in handy when the birds dive-bombed her and dropped all kinds of nastiness on her head. She loved the experience nonetheless.

A recently graduated wildlife biology major, Mary spent two summers as a URI Coastal Fellow, an initiative designed to involve undergraduate students in addressing current environmental problems. Now in its 19th year, the program pairs students with a mentor and research staff to help them gain skills relevant to their academic major and future occupations.

Mary calls the program a great opportunity to get experience as a field biologist, an “amazing resume builder,” and an excellent way to network with professional biologists. And she got paid, too.

“I really grew as a biologist,” she said. “It helped me learn to ask my own questions and figure out that a lot of times field research doesn’t go as planned. Learning to go with the flow and figure out the next step when encountering a problem is a practical skill I took away from the experience.”

I really grew as a biologist. It helped me learn to ask my own questions and figure out that a lot of times field research doesn’t go as planned.

On uninhabited islands just off the southern New England coast, Mary worked with Professor Peter Paton and graduate student Kevin Rogers to assess the habitat characteristics that roseate terns prefer when selecting a nest site. Together they regularly visited nests on the islands, identified nearby plants, and estimated vegetation cover in the area. They even used a drone to take aerial photographs of the nest sites.

About 40 students are selected as Coastal Fellows each year, and if  birds aren’t your thing, don’t worry, research subjects vary tremendously. You might participate in a project to monitor water quality in local ponds and streams, conduct habitat restoration in salt marshes, track sharks in Rhode Island Sound, monitor tick populations, evaluate the hydrology of vernal pools, assess how a pest insect is killing hemlock trees, or one of many others.

Recent graduate Kerndja Bien-Aime got hooked on frogs and salamanders during her Coastal Fellows research last year. She conducted an analysis of how much forest cover the amphibians prefer around their breeding ponds. She surveyed 39 ponds in Rhode Island looking for wood frog and spotted salamander eggs, netting red-spotted newts, and listening for the evening calls of wood frogs, green frogs, bullfrogs, and spring peepers.

“There’s just something about amphibians—how they work with the environment, and how they need a healthy environment to thrive—that is appealing to me,” said Kerndja. “I’ve had some cool experiences working with them, and I know this is what I want to do with my career.”

Although Mary Grande occasionally hears the “cak-cak-cak” call of dive-bombing terns in her sleep, she still says that she loves the Coastal Fellows program. “I hope lots of students take advantage of this amazing resource in the future.”