Dear Donors,

This summer I had the pleasure of interning at the Echo Leahy Center for Lake Champlain. It was a wonderful journey filled with many great people and animals along the way. I have gained extremely valuable hands-on experience studying and handling the many fish, reptile, and amphibian species of the Champlain Basin. I truly believe that this internship has helped hone my record keeping and research skills, in turn making me a better scientist. I have also gained a better appreciation and a better understanding of the various life cycles of many different species of amphibians and reptiles. I even got featured releasing turtles on the news during the annual Spiny Softshell Turtle release at the North Hero State Park. This was perhaps the most impactful act that I performed at the Echo Leahy Center for Lake Champlain.

The Spiny Softshell Turtle is a threatened species in Lake Champlain, it is thought that there is only a couple hundred breeding pairs left in the lake. Lake Champlain is one of the borders of their range. The purpose of this turtle release is to preserve this interesting and comical looking species for future generations to enjoy. I have spent a huge proportion of my summer directly working with and studying these wonderful creatures and the last thing I want to see is their disappearance from the Champlain Basin. The Echo Leahy Center for Lake Champlain plays a crucial part in the preservation of the Spiny Softshell Turtle. Echo has partnered up with the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife specifically for the purpose of preserving and releasing these turtles. Echo is essentially providing a “head start” program for baby Spiny Softshell Turtles. This so called “head start” program is under the leadership of Steve Parren (VT Fish and Wildlife) and Steve Smith (Echo). The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife provides a number of baby turtles to Echo, so they can care for them throughout the winter and spring. The babies are able to grow faster than they would if they were forced to hibernate and they are also protected from predators.

Some of the other duties, besides caring for the Spiny Softshell Turtles, that I was responsible for were:  collecting animals, handling animals, captive husbandry, maintaining, creating, and installing naturalistic habitats, life support system maintenance for fish and reptiles, making critical observations of animals and their captive habitats, medicating animals, preparing diets and feeding animals, record keeping, and researching the natural history of various animal species. I also had the pleasure of catching a Common Carp from Dead Creek in Panton Vermont, for Echo’s Invasive species tank. I decided to name this Carp, Leonardo De Carpio. I was also able to conduct an extensive amount of research and prepared a speech on the various aquatic invasive species that are established in the Champlain Basin.

I have really enjoyed my summer working at the Echo Leahy Center for Lake Champlain! I have met a lot of really cool people and I have enjoyed working with them. I will especially miss working with the animals at Echo; they brightened my day each and every time that I worked with them. This has truly been one of the best and one of the most influential experiences of my life. I am extremely grateful to have had this experience and even though this journey is over, I will always remember and cherish it! I am extremely grateful for the funding that I had received, it allowed me to commit myself fully to my internship. Thank you very much! P.S. I have attached a few photos as well.

Sincerely,
Matthew Gorton