MEET OUR INTERNS
Ally Draime
Ally graduated from University of California Santa Cruz with a Bachelors degree in Biology and Environmental Studies back in 2017. Immediately after university she worked as the resident biologist of an orchid and bromeliad botanical garden and ecological reserve in Chiapas, Mexico. Although she loved it, she realized her true passion lies in marine conservation. While conducting research in Baja, Mexico while in university, she became immensely passionate about working with fishermen on the topic of sustainable fishing and shark conservation and never stopped thinking about it. She also got a taste of shark field research working with Pelagios Kakunja, another conservation organization in Baja.
She’s so excited to get the opportunity to do this internship because the last few years of her life have been away from the ocean doing search and rescue and outdoor guiding, and she is more than ready to start dedicating her time back to the ocean, its resources and the communities that work with them! In her free time she loves to rock climb, SCUBA dive and watch movies. She is currently working on becoming a better free diver and underwater photographer.
Nicholas Starosta
Nick graduated from Eckerd College in 2021 with a bachelors of Science in Marine Science and Environmental Studies. Nick spent his early years sifting through wrack lines on the beach to find sharks teeth, ultimately fostering an immense curiosity and respect for the oceans creatures. He has since made it his mission to join the growing field of shark conservation! Nick’s adventures originally started in 2019 as a student, when he was lucky enough to travel with an Eckerd College university course to the Bimini Biological Field Station. Since then, he has been working in the conservation field in Hawaii, where he aids in sea turtle rehabilitation and humpback whale disentanglement efforts. After many years of waiting, the timing finally aligned to partake in an internship at the Shark Lab, and he hopes to use the experience as a core building block for his career. This fall, Nick will be starting his graduate degree at the University of New England, focusing his thesis on stable isotope analysis in elasmobranchs. Outside of the research world, Nick can usually be found near the ocean. He enjoys tide-pooling, snorkeling, spearfishing, and of course, a simple evening relaxing by the waves. Excited everyday to see what the world has in store, there’s nowhere he would rather be than swimming with the fishes!
Shae Schreckengost
Shae recently graduated from Coastal Carolina University with her Master’s degree in Coastal Marine and Wetland Science (Spring 2023) as a student under Dr. Dan Abel and was a Division I softball catcher. Prior to starting graduate school, she completed her undergraduate degree in Zoology at Michigan State University also as a Division I softball catcher (Spring 2021). From a young age, Shae expressed a strong interest in helping animals, and so, sought after a career where she could make a difference with the creatures that needed it most. After seeing the Bimini Biological Field Station featured on Shark Week in 2012, she was determined to become involved with the Lab one day. During the completion of her Master’s degree, Shae has gained an abundance of hands-on knowledge of shark longlining, shark biology, and ecology through her role as a member of the CCU Shark Research Crew. As she longs to get back into shark research, Shae eventually wants to begin a PhD on elasmobranch parthenogenesis. In her free time, Shae loves to SCUBA, kayak, bike, practice yoga, read, golf, and tend to her plants.
Meghana Binraj
Meghana (aka Megh) was always drawn to the enchanting appeal of water. Even though she grew up in a landlocked city like Bangalore, India. She finds bliss when encircled by oceanic spaces, whether lowered in it or looking upon its tremendous territory from a boat. She says that her work in marine conservation and research can be compared to the journey of a seed, carried by ocean currents to new shores. After her masters in Conservation, she received a couple of small grants and went on to work as an Independent researcher. There, she worked on understanding the relationships and flows in the fish market from ecological economics and socio-anthropology perspectives with focus on elasmobranchs and seafood trade. Followed by 2 years’ intensive study of elasmobranch fisheries in the East Coast of India. As she delved deeper into the intricacies of ecological systems and the fishing communities that rely on them, she understood how little she really figured out about the intricate connection among people and the sea. Her endeavors all share a common thread: kayaking, backpacking, calligraphy, nature reading, writing, image making, and exploration.
Fabienne Müller
Fabienne (aka Fabi) grew up in the middle of Germany in the countryside. Even as a child she was fascinated by the ocean, and she always loved sharks. She attended the Bimini Shark Lab already in 2015 as a Volunteer after she earned her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences. Since then, she always wanted to come back, because she loved her time in the Shark Lab and on Bimini. After the internship she followed her other interest and studied biomedicine in her master’s back in Germany, followed by a PhD in cancer research in which she just recently graduated. To take a break after studies and before she is going to start a new job in Europe, she enjoys her time now back in the Shark Lab and loves spending time with her most favourite animals – sharks.