The Beltran lab leads a population monitoring effort of northern elephant seals at Año Nuevo Reserve, a 30-minute drive north of UCSC. The overarching goal of the program is to maintain a population of uniquely tagged seals for demographic, behavioral, and physiological research. We are looking for highly motivated and reliable students who are passionate about ecology and evolution. As part of the program, students will learn valuable research skills and knowledge from existing graduate students, program assistants, postdocs, and faculty members in the program.

Undergraduate students have the opportunity to participate in on-going research and lab efforts in two different capacities – A Spring quarter field course (BIOE 128L) or a year-long field assistant position.

BIOE 128L – LARGE MARINE VERTEBRATE FIELD COURSE

The large marine vertebrate field course is a great way to explore our research in a short-term capacity to see if our on-going research efforts align with your own research interests and academic goals, while simultaneously building valuable field and research skills. The course combines lectures and a fieldwork component in which students work closely with existing Beltran lab members at Año Nuevo Reserve, located ~30 minutes north of Santa Cruz. Field course students participate in weekly fieldwork (~7 weeks) and assist with flipper tag and mark resights of northern elephant seals and instrumentation procedures of adult seals. The field course also involves the creation and completion of an independent research project that will contribute to a class-wide manuscript intended for publication. Previous BIOE 128L class projects have been published in Science and the Journal of Animal Ecology. BIOE 128L students are sometimes invited to join the lab as field assistants in our undergraduate cohort the following year.

The large marine vertebrate field course is an upper division course within the ecology and evolutionary biology (EEB) department. However, sophomores may apply as long as they satisfy the prerequisites.

Enrollment is by application. Applications are typically released by the EEB advising office in mid-late February, Winter quarter.

BELTRAN LAB UNDERGRADUATE FIELD ASSISTANT

Undergraduate students are an instrumental part of our research program and lab efforts. Each year, we accept and support a cohort of ~10 undergraduate field assistants.

The Beltran lab is extremely fortunate to have recently received a research grant from the Office of Naval Research which includes funding to pay our undergraduate research assistants minimum wage for the first 5 hours of work per week in Fall-Spring quarter. Paid positions are available for both work-study and non-work-study students. Application information will be shared with selected students.

Undergraduate field assistants help with a variety of research efforts involving the northern elephant seal colony at Año Nuevo Reserve. Depending on the day, fieldwork consists of searching for and recording flipper-tagged and marked seals, marking seals with hair dye, participating in instrumentation/sedation procedures, and weighing young-of-the-year seals. These efforts span the entirety of Fall, Winter, and Spring quarter and require year-long training on a wide variety of field tasks. Due to this, we require a field assistant commitment of at least one full academic year. Additionally, we do not accept first year field assistants who are entering their final year at UC Santa Cruz.

All fieldwork involves carrying equipment, walking up and down sand dunes, and hiking long distances. More experienced field assistants may be asked to do more physically demanding tasks such as hoisting, restraining, and tagging seals. Weather conditions are often cold, windy, and rainy. Fieldwork requires teams to be out in the field and elements for several hours at a time. Additional daily tasks may include data entry, sample processing, and gear cleaning.

Field assistant expectations and time commitments:

  • Lab commitment of at least one academic year (Fall-Spring quarter)
  • First year field assistants: Ability to be present in Santa Cruz and actively participate in fieldwork every week for the entire academic year (i.e., no stuy abroad plans)
    • 2nd and 3rd year field assistants are encouraged to discuss study abroad plans with Roxanne and Natalie, and may be asked to take on additional shifts to compensate for their absence during their study abroad term.
  • At least on field shift per week @ Año Nuevo Reserve (~6 hours)
    • Depending on the academic quarter and current research focus, field shifts may be in the morning (~6am-11:30am) or in the afternoon (~3pm-9pm)
    • Field schedules will change each quarter to accommodate new class schedules.
    • Field teams will meet at the Coastal Science Campus and carpool to the field in a lab vehicle
  • Attend mandatory, once per week training sessions during early Fall quarter (typically three-four in-person training sessions @ CSC)

Desirable field assistant qualifications and attributes:

  • 2nd or 3rd year UCSC students with an interest in long-term program participation with increased responsibilities 
  • No prior experience with marine mammals is necessary. However, due to our close contact with large, aggressive wild animals, previous animal handling or training experience is desired
  • Attention to detail
  • Multitasking, communication, and teamwork skills
  • Flexibility and adaptability – we conduct a variety of research efforts throughout the year and each season can look very different from one another 
  • Willingness to work early mornings and long days 
  • Enthusiasm and positive attitude!

We are not currently accepting new undergraduate field assistants for the 2025-2026 school year. We will re-evaluate our available undergraduate positions and make field assistant selections for the 2026-2027 school year in late June to early July 2026.

If you are interested in potentially joining the Beltran Lab as a paid research field assistant, please fill out this student interest form. For more information, please contact our lab technician, Natalie Storm, at nastorm@ucsc.edu or Professor Beltran at roxanne@ucsc.edu. Thank you for your interest in the Beltran Lab!