Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research

Student’s Volunteer Botanical Internship Program 2009

Participants and Institutions

2009 represented the seventeenth year that the Student’s Volunteer Botanical Intern Program (SVBIP) has been run. Six interns successfully completed the Program in 200, making a total since the program’s inception (1992) of 248 students. Students were working towards or had completed degrees in botany, resource and environmental management, coastal studies, conservation and land management and horticulture.

Work Output

Output achieved by interns during 2009 was roughly equal to half of a one person-year of technical labour.

Curatorial work included mounting and incorporation of vascular and non-vascular specimens, identification of specimens, allocation of labels to specimens ready for mounting, and general herbarium tasks. Significant assistance was provided to Loans with over 2871 specimens processed as part of both loans and exchange.

Along with curation work, interns provided research assistance to a number of the CPBR research scientists. Assistance was again provided to research groups such as orchids, including labelling of spirit material, and the Acacia project, including collection of live material from the ANBG. Assistance was also provided to cryptogams with a number of tasks completed.

Fieldwork in 2009 followed the well-established format of previous years. The first trip was a one-day drive led by Brendan Lepschi and Dave Mallinson, through sites around Queanbeyan, Captains Flat, Tallaganda State Forest and Braidwood, introducing the interns to many local species. The addition of the Back Creek Travelling Stock Reserve near Braidwood to the itinerary proved to be particularly interesting as Dave spotted an unusual plant which turned out to be Eriocaulon australasicum, last recorded in NSW in 1853.

The four-day residential field trip was held again at Jervis Bay. Interns surveyed a number of woodland and heath communities in Booderee National Park to practice their collecting techniques and acquire material to identify. A “Treasure Hunt” style mapping exercise was also conducted and was both enjoyable and enlightening. Booderee Botanic Gardens Curator Bernie McLeod once again led a Koori bush food and medicine tour around the new Koori section of the Booderee Botanic Gardens while Booderee National Park staff conducted a tour of Bitou Bush control sites and discussed park and reserve management issues with the interns.

Concerns and Issues

The perennial problem of accommodation for interstate participants remains a major issue. Our inability to offer subsidies for accommodation for out-of-town interns has restricted our field of potential applicants. All students avoided the high priced ANU colleges this year, finding short-term share accommodation off campus. A number of DEWHA staff also generously billeted rooms to students. Accommodation costs are the single biggest issue mentioned by students first starting the Program.

Accreditation

The following Universities currently provide accreditation for the program:

• Australian National University
• Flinders University
• James Cook University
• Monash University
• University of Melbourne
• University of New England
• University of Queensland
• University of the Sunshine Coast

Acknowledgements

The success of the 2009 Program is in no small part due to the considerable efforts of a number of Centre staff, outside academics and others who freely gave their time to present lectures and training sessions, as well as providing supervision for intern work teams. Thanks are also due to all CPBR and ANBG staff, especially those at the Herbarium, for their tolerance and enthusiasm during the course of the Program. I would particularly like to thank all those who once again provided invaluable support to the Internship Coordinator.

Bronwyn Collins,
SVBIP Coordinator
May 2009

Student’s Volunteer Botanical Internship Program Participants 1993 – 2009