Frostburg State University Student Interns In South African
Wildlife Rehab Center
By
Madie Wilson of The Bottom Line
Cara introducing Jen to Xai, one of the center’s lions.
Photograph by Jen Tyrell
Jen
and Neeku, a wildlife photographer.
Photograph by Jen Tyrell
Jen
observes a leopard named Tiger before he was darted and
relocated to a better environment.
Photograph by Jen Tyrell
Jen
Tyrell, a resident of Pittsfield and a senior at Frostburg State
University studying Interpretative Biology, spent three weeks
this summer at Gitta-Martula, a wildlife rehabilitation center
located near Thabazimbi, South Africa.
From rehabilitating sick, orphaned, and injured animals to
participating in the darting and relocation of many species
including several waterbuck, two spotted hyenas, and a leopard,
you could say this was the experience of a lifetime.
The
volunteer program, offered by Gitta-Martula allowed Jen to learn
about an African game reserve, including maintenance, game
counts, bush utilization, and an “up-close and personal”
experience with the center’s lions.
While her trip seems exciting in all shapes and forms, it also
involved some hardships. One of the most difficult events of a
rehabilitation center is not being able to save an animal, and
being a rehabber means facing this reality every day, but
choosing to do the job anyways.
Gitta-Martula was founded and built by owners Cara and Louis de
Bruyn in 2010, after recognizing the area’s need for a
rehabilitation facility. Designed and built specifically for
this purpose, the center includes two cages, outside enclosures
and bomas (enclosures used in parts of the African Great Lakes
region and Southern Africa), as well as a rehab emergency clinic
for emergency operations.
Situated 155 miles Northwest of Johannesburg, the largest city
in South Africa, this non-profit organization offers knowledge
and experience one could only acquire in such an area.
When asked why Gitta-Martula could be a lifetime experience,
Cara de Bruyn responded with enthusiasm, “Everything’s so unique
and so hands-on. It’s a different learning environment that
students and volunteers can’t acquire in a place like a
classroom. All the animals you get to interact with here are
incomparable to those you can interact with from areas like the
States.”
De
Bruyn and those at the organization love to get volunteers and
interns, the majority coming from the U.S. and Germany. In fact,
they receive roughly five interns a year, all of which the
organization is extremely grateful, not only have extra hands
working at the center, but also to share education on a subject
all the workers are so fond of. The center even includes a lodge
for volunteers, including a lounge, kitchen, bedrooms with
en-suite bathrooms, a swimming pool, campfire, BBQ, and an
outside bar area.
FSU
offers an internship program with several benefits in taking an
internship for academic credit. There is the option of taking
either nine or 15 credits, based on part-time or full-time
commitment, which means up to 15 credits towards the 120 credits
needed to graduate. Aside from knowledge and experience,
internships also serve as a great addition to resumes.
Jen
Tyrell majors in Interpretive Biology with minors in Animal
Behavior, Biology, and Psychology. She first aspired to be a
zookeeper, but after her experience in South Africa, she now
wishes to pursue the career of an animal rehabber. As de Bruyn
would say, “it gets under your skin.”
Tyrell will be presenting her capstone on her internship
sometime in October and hopes to return to South Africa one day
to help continue the work that the people at Gitta-Martula
continue to do every day.