Volunteer Opportunities

The following is a list of nature-related volunteer opportunities. We would like to strongly encourage our visitors to consider giving a helping hand to conservation by donating some time to a nature-related organization. These organizations cannot do it alone. Let's show our support.

If you are or know of an organization that is seeking volunteers, please e-mail us and we will gladly include you on this page.

Butterflies

Birds

Miscellaneous

Butterflies

Ordered by country, then state.

Canadian Wildlife Federation

All of Canada - butterfly surveys in your area; report forms available.

Bronte Butterfly Monitoring Project

Oakville, Ontario, Canada - Butterfly observers needed to monitor once a week in good weather throughout the summer and take inventory of the number and type of butterflies observed.

North American Butterfly Monitoring Project

All of North America - conduct butterfly counts and surveys.

Biophilia Nature Center

Elberta, Alabama - help reestablish native butterfly plants, raise butterflies, and give environmental tours. Contact person: Carol Lovell-Saas (334)987-1200.

Huntsville-Madison County Botanical Garden in Huntsville, Alabama

Huntsville, Alabama - volunteers needed in butterfly house.

Sonoran Arthropod Studies Institute (SASI)

Tucson, AZ - Help with research, education, clerical duties, gardening and more.

Tucson Botanical Garden

Tucson, AZ - Various opportunities involve gift shop, gardens and grounds, education, horticulture, library, office work.

Mesker Park Botanic Garden

Evansville, IN - needs interpreters in butterfly exhibit. Contact Stephanie Brown at (812) 428-0715, ext 414 for more information.

Nature Center/Museum, Linn Grove Iowa

Volunteers are needed to plant and replant the butterfly garden at the Nature Center/Museum in Linn Grove, Iowa. We are located 22 miles south of Spencer, Iowa, and 18 miles north of Storm Lake, Iowa. We have started a butterfly garden but will need help expanding and replanting this spring, probably in May. For further information, please can contact
Marian M. McNabb
gwmmm@pionet.net
712-296-4920

Wichita Botanical Gardens

Wichita, KS - Help out with education, gift shop, gardening and a lot more.

Brookside Garden's Wing of Fancy

Wheaton, Maryland - needs ticket takers and cashiers

Save the Pine Bush - home of the endangered Karner Blue Butterfly

Albany, NY - fund-raising, volunteer coordinator, and more. This is crucial habitat to many threatened species. Any help you can give would contribute to its conservation.

Sweetbriar Nature Center

Smithtown, NY - needs help in vivarium.

Westtown Township, PA

Looking for volunteers to help maintain newly planted 4800 square foot butterfly garden located directly behind the township hall on Route 202. Duties would include weeding, planting, tours/walks and taking periodic logs of butterfly visitors. Will provide training. Call (610)692-1930.

Texas Monarch Watch

Butterfly counts and raise, tag and release.

Birds

Costa Rica - Great Green Macaw English Spanish

Interns needed for study of migration and foraging habits of the endangered Great Green Macaw.

Ornithology-Christian Birdwatchers Global Fellowship

Elmo Alles, 11/2, Boyd Place, Colombo-3, Sri Lanka; Would like to have biblical references,notes & observations. For more info, send e-mail.

American Birding Association

The Nature Conservancy

Various opportunities in many states.

Project Feeder Watch

Winter Finch and Red-breasted Nuthatch Survey

Hawk Color Banding

San Geronimo, CA - Looking for someone with excellent tree-climbing skills who would like to visit and volunteer climbing trees to band nestling raptors.

Colorado Bird Observatory

Bald eagle watch, hawk watch, songbird banding and data entry.

Raptor Rehab of Kentucky

WindStar Wildlife Institute

Jefferson, MD - Opportunities for data entry, outdoor maintenance, monitoring bluebird and songbird nesting box trails, setting up wildlife habitat information files, writing grant proposals, setting up wildlife photo and illustration library.

New Jersey Audubon Society

Needs nature walk leaders, sanctuary maintenance, and other.

New Jersey Division Fish, Game & Wildlife - Beach Nesting Bird Project

The Raptor Trust

Millington, NJ - Needs volunteers from May through August. Work includes cleaning and maintaining songbird cages, feeding baby birds, care of orphaned waterfowl, and helping staff members as needed. Please contact Ellen Goldberg at (908)647-1091 or (908)647-2353.

Southeastern New Mexico Audubon Society

Volunteer as a driver or recorder; do not need to be able to id birds.

Portland Audubon Society

Needs tour naturalist, chairperson for Nature Night Membership Program, nature store assistants.

Purple Martin Conservation Association

Edinboro, PA - During the busy season (December thru June) we need volunteers for various tasks including Magazine/Catalog labeling, Shipping Assistant, Clerical (filing, typing, labeling), Field Assistant (Martin House Maintanance/ Data recording).

Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary

McKinney, TX - needs research assistant, curatorial aide, trail guides, and more.

Rocky Mountain Raptor Program

Southwestern Research Station

For biology students.

Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas

West Virginia Raptor Rehabilitation Center

MAPS Monitoring - Bubolz Nature Preserve

Appleton, WI - MAPS Monitoring (Avian Productivity and Survivorship) program, from the beginning of June through mid August. Participate with bird banders in the operation of a ten net MAPS station. Help is needed in the areas of data entry, vegetative surveys, banding, and net operation. Housing and occasional meals provided. Contact: Elaine Meyer, Naturalist, Bubolz Nature Preserve, 4815 N. Lynndale Dr., Appleton, WI 54915; 920-731-6041; bubolz@dataex.com

Miscellaneous

Alliance for a Living Ocean

Beach Haven, NJ - Partake in the gift shop, trash pick-up, Black Whale cruises, public events, water quality tracking and lots more.

Itereí Brazilian Private Rainforest Preserve

São Paulo, Brazil - Many opportunities are available from working in the butterfly garden gift shop to performing independent research. Minimum stay 2 weeks; maximum stay 3 months.

The Nature Conservancy

Various opportunities in many states.

Roman Nose State Park

Watonga, OK - We are looking for volunteers for various parts of our operation. We can use people with just about any talent. We are especially interested in folks who RV because we have no park housing. Volunteers can give visitor or school programs, operate the nature center, enter computer data, participate in habitat improvement projects such as tree and flower plantings and nest box building, trail building and maintenance, exhibit design and roving interpretation. Any volunteers who give at least 30 hours per week will be provided with a free RV or camping space. We have a beautiful park for those who are able to take advantage of free time for this purpose. Like most parks, we are extremely understaffed. Our address is: Roman Nose State Park, Rt. 1, Watonga, OK 73772;(580) 623-7281 ext. 311

Southern Rockies Restoration Project

Western CO & Northern NM - Manual restoration projects.

Volunteer America

Connects individuals, families, and groups with volunteer opportunities on public lands all across the US.