As a wildlife biologist, you have incredible moments with animals that are nearly impossible for other people to experience. But you also do some pretty crazy, strange, and downright WEIRD things.
In my 17 years working in the field across four continents and for a variety of organizations, I've had experiences that range from terrifying to awe-inspiring to disgusting. So in this episode of the Fancy Scientist podcast, I'm sharing my top ten with you! Plus, you’ll get a couple of bonus memories.
The show notes for this episode will be really short because I don’t want to give away too much, but I’ll take you on my adventures from Central Africa to Central Missouri, and from the suburbs to remote mountaintops. You’ll learn about the most dangerous things that I did, the (multiple) scary animal encounters that I had, and how I felt like I was living in an Indian Jones movie at times.
You’ll hear about encounters with lions and tigers and (no bears, sorry), but other animals!
Specifically, I go over:
- My top ten moments in my 17 years of working as a wildlife biologist, including the scariest, most awe-inspiring, rare, weirdest, and more
- The unexpected things I never thought I would do as a wildlife biologist
- Why wildlife biologists have to do some really weird things for research
- How my perception of what was scary changed over time
- Psychologically scary vs what’s really scary
- The scariest moment of my entire life
- And much, much more! I don’t want to give too much away
Whether you want to work in wildlife professionally, you're already in the field, or you simply love wild animals and wild places, you'll walk away from this episode inspired to go explore the natural world, whether it’s traveling to a new country or taking a deep dive in the green spaces in your neighborhood. Nature is everywhere and ready for you to explore.
Jump Links:
00:00 Intro and why I'm doing superlatives
03:42 Most scary, early career
09:17 Most awe-inspiring
12:58 Most psychologically scary
15:03 Feeling most like a wildlife biologist
17:53 Most Indiana Jones
21:55 Closest animal encounter
23:59 Most rare and unique
26:12 Most dangerous
29:28 Weirdest
32:21 Scariest moment of my life
39:33 Bonus moment 1
41:42 Bonus moment 2
Dream of being a wildlife biologist, zoologist, conservation biologist, or ecologist? Ready to turn your love of animals into a thriving career?🌿🐘 Then…
🐾 Get my FREE Weekly Wildlife Wrap-Up where every Friday, I share strategies on how to stand out and get hired in wildlife, conservation, and environmental careers using a framework that's landed my students permanent jobs, internships, and more: https://stephanieschuttler.podia.com/wildlife-wrap-up
📚 Read Getting a Job in Wildlife Biology: What It’s Like and What You Need to Know: https://www.amazon.com/Getting-Job-Wildlife-Biology-What/dp/B08JDYXS4G/
I’m Dr. Stephanie Manka (formerly Schuttler), a wildlife biologist of 20 yrs who is on a mission to empower wildlife professionals and break stereotypes of scientists so they can get jobs, live out their life’s purpose, and make a difference in this world.
🎥 How I became a wildlife biologist: https://youtu.be/zBvHRDO7gIg
Full show notes:
👉https://stephanieschuttler.com/fancy-scientist-podcast-155-wildest-wildlife/
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