Summer Internship - Best Trees for Bees Kew Gardens, England
Job description
Summer Internship - Best Trees for Bees
RBG Kew’s Nature Unlocked program is supported by a new 4 year sponsorship from Mount Anvil to develop a decisions tool for evaluating the benefits of urban landscapes to pollinator biodiversity and to identify the most important native and non-native woody plants for the UK’s pollinators. Trees provide essential pollen and nectar for pollinators yet are often overlooked in their contribution to habitat management especially in urban landscapes. This work will contribute directly to delivery of Initiative 2 Deliverable 2 and to the delivery of UK’s National Pollinator Strategy Action Plan 2022 and could inform plant selection for future-proofing UK cities and countryside.
- Employee Benefits - RBG Kew.pdf
(PDF, 1924.01kb) - Summer intern Job Profile.pdf
(PDF, 137.05kb) - P2 summer project details.pdf
(PDF, 133.13kb)
More details
The intern will conduct fieldwork at Wakehurst surveying the living collection to
- Determine diversity and abundance of floral visitors on native and non-native trees and shrubs.
- Identify trees and shrubs that could support pollinators in warmer climates (based on existing data for those species).
- Quantify nectar and analyse sugar content of surveyed species.
- Collect pollen samples for lipid analysis by LC-MS in the Biological Chemistry lab at Kew.
The work will support the team at a busy time of the year using a range of sampling techniques to quantify plant-pollinator interactions, including netting and timed observations over a discrete period deliverable within 8 weeks. The successful candidate will gain experience in microscopy, insect specimen handling, and species identification of wild bees with specimens in the laboratory. Pollen analysis will provide experience of sample preparation for lipidomics and state-of-art LC-MS.
Please see the Summer internship job profile together with the project specific requirements attached.
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew) is a leading plant science institute, UNESCO World Heritage Site, and major visitor attraction. Our mission is to understand and protect plants and fungi for the well-being of people and the future of all life on Earth.
We are working to end the unprecedented extinction crisis and to help create a world where nature is protected, valued by all and managed sustainably. We will achieve these goals by drawing on our leading scientific research, unrivalled collections of plants and fungi, global network of partners, inspirational gardens at Kew and Wakehurst, and our 260 years of history.
Join us on our journey as protectors of the world’s plants and fungi.
The salary will be £19,582 per annum (pro rata).
Our fantastic benefits package includes opportunities for continuous learning, a generous annual leave entitlement, flexible working to help you maintain a healthy work-life balance, an Employee Assistance Programme and other wellbeing support such as cycle to work scheme and discounted gym membership. We also offer a competitive pension, an employee discount scheme and free entry into a wide range of national museums and galleries, as well as access to our own beautiful gardens at Kew and Wakehurst.
If you are interested in this position, please submit your application through the online portal, by clicking “Apply for this job”.
We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from all sections of the community. We guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the post.
No agencies please.
