For any general questions regarding Michigan State Bird Observatory or Burke Lake Banding Station, please email burkelakebanding@gmail.com.
Burke Lake Banding Station offers many opportunities for volunteering, internship, student research projects, and employment:
Volunteers
Volunteers help us in many ways year-round. Please fill out this form if you are interested in volunteering so that we can match our needs with your interests and availability, and check out our Signup page to sign up to volunteer at upcoming events.
If you are interested in volunteering as a mist-net assistant, please note that this requires substantial investment by both the volunteer and BULA staff. Be prepared to start your training by shadowing our trained extractors for several days, even if you have had previous experience. You will then go through a training process. After being trained and approved to volunteer as a mist-net assistant, we expect that you will commit to volunteering at the station at least two days a week during the season. Please carefully consider your ability to commit to volunteering as a mist-net assistant before we dedicate our time to teaching you.
Internships and Employment Opportunities
Internships are available each fall banding season (August – October). Mist Net Technician interns are trained in mist net extraction techniques and assist with data entry and site maintenance. Internships and require availability of at least three mornings per week. Michigan State University undergraduates and high school students without bird banding experience will be given priority during the selection process. If you are interested in applying for an internship, please fill out the volunteer form and email burkelakebanding@gmail.com with your résumé by August 1.
Undergraduate research
Project opportunities are available. Please contact owenj@msu.edu for more information.
Employment
Opportunities are occasionally available for banders, mist net technicians, and outreach positions. These opportunities will be posted here and on Texas A&M’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences Job Board website.
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