Happy New Year! We’re gearing up for our winter 2016 giant panda research season – I leave in just 3 weeks – Yikes! But I thought that a great way to start the new year was introducing you to our second winter 2016 giant panda intern. Here’s a little self-introduction that Alyssa wrote:
Alyssa Matsuoka with her dog
“Hello PDXWildlife followers! I am Alyssa Matsuoka, winter 2016 panda intern. I graduated from the University of Idaho in December 2012 with a degree in Biology and a minor in Psychology. During my undergraduate studies, I had the privilege of being a member of the Greek system (Alpha Phi, Beta Zeta chapter), and I also had great educational opportunities such as participating in a field research course that took place on Coconut Island, Kaneohe (off the coast of Oahu).
Alyssa Matsuoka with her Alpha Phi sisters
My time on Coconut Island was spent observing fish activity along the reef throughout the day. This experience made me realize what I wanted to do with my degree. I’ve always had a great love of animals, and exotic animal field research is a dream job of mine. Since graduating, the dream has been, temporarily, on hold. Like many recent biology graduates, I have been on a walkabout of sorts; experiencing life as an office worker, salmon cannery “gear room girl” and, most recently, substitute teacher. Finally, my little walkabout has brought me back to biology.
Coconut island
This internship will be a lot of “firsts” for me: first internship, first international travel experience, first time working with pandas…(just to name a few). These three months with the pandas are going to be an amazing introduction to what a research career would be like, and I couldn’t be more excited! I hope you enjoy following our winter 2016 adventure!”
So far Alyssa has proven to be a speedy and concise communicator – great for the sciences! I’m very excited to start training all the interns in about 6 weeks!
-Meg