This week, the Field Guide visits Nava Kiss, an intern with Conservation Legacy’s Stewards Individual Placements Program. Nava is currently serving as the Visual Information Specialist at the Gulf Islands National Seashore, which preserves natural and historic resources along the Gulf of Mexico ‘barrier islands’ of Florida and Mississippi.

The Florida district of the Seashore features offshore barrier islands with sparkling white quartz sand beaches, historic structures, and nature trails. The Mississippi District has similar features, and also includes wildlife sanctuaries, bayous, and campgrounds.

A view from the shore overlooking the gulf.

“I am responsible for managing the park’s media in my position,” explains Nava. “This includes editing the website, making additions to the mobile app, capturing photography and videography of park areas and events, creating content for the park social media, and more! I love my job because no two days look the same.” Nava grew up camping, hiking and visiting National Parks with her dad as they travelled with the Air Force. She’s visited 21 of the 63 Parks in the country. She is a student, finishing degrees in Biology and Marine Sciences, and is passionate about photography and videography. Her education in science and experience in creating media both motivated her to apply for the Visual Information Specialist internship. “I identify as a creative and an outdoor enthusiast,” said Nava. “In my internship, I share my love of the outdoors with others in hopes of making the parks an inviting and educational space for all.”

Nava taking pictures on Petit Bois island.

Recently, Nava traveled to the Mississippi side of the Gulf Islands National Seashore to capture media of the Seashore’s biology team. The Mississippi area includes several islands that are home to an invasive rodent known as a ‘nutria’ (also called coypu), which are a large species of rodent from South America responsible for severe ecological damage.

A nutria eating some vegetation. (Credit: NPS)

Nutria were brought to the U.S. to bolster the fur trade in the early 20th Century. They eat aquatic plants, roots, and snails, and burrow through marshlands, causing significant erosion. They reproduce prolifically—it is estimated that a single breeding pair can result in two hundred nutrias by the end of the year!

The region is seeing more frequent and increasingly severe storms as a result of the changing climate. At the same time, the nutria are contributing heavily to vegetation loss on the island, chewing up grasses and tearing out roots. This vegetation is key to preventing erosion and stabilizing the island. If the nutria are not kept in check, the island is susceptible to being destroyed by storms and erosion.

Although the intentional removal of a plant or animal can feel like the antithesis of conservation, it’s actually a critical part of mitigating habitat loss and protecting biodiversity. Invasive species—non-native plants and animals that cause environmental harm—can threaten native wildlife and ecosystems, and are causing ecological havoc in many of our planet’s most sensitive habitats, pushing many native plants and animals to the brink of extinction. To combat the negative environmental impacts of the nutria, the National Park Service has taken on a project in Mississippi that involves setting traps and removing the rodents. The scientists work in zones across the island, setting between 15-30 traps per zone.

Nava’s photos from a trip to Petit Bois island with fellow Stewards interns Grady Jakobsberg and Darby McGhee, led by NPS staff Barrett Warmbein.

Nava is just getting started in her position with the Gulf Islands National Seashore, but already she has gained so much insight and knowledge about the Park, and the National Park Service as well. “Getting to shadow all the different divisions within the NPS has really helped me understand the hierarchy and structure in a way I never could’ve without being internal,” she reflects. “I’ll look back on this experience with pride and gratitude. Pride that I was able to move to a new city by myself and start a full time internship while finishing my degrees, and gratitude that this internship provides me the freedom to grow both professionally and personally! I’ll look back on this time in my life and be so happy I took the leap, even though it was daunting at first!”

Click here to view all open positions with Stewards Individual Placements Program and begin your journey today!