Fernando Diaz graduated from the University of Arizona in 2020, where he developed a passion for birds and conservation. An internship for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service inspired him to pursue a career as a conservation biologist for the USFWS full-time. Since graduating, he has been working seasonal positions focused in restoration, conservation, and wildlife. Fernando is excited to work at the Corn Creek Visitor’s Center to further develop his skillset, meet new people, and promote the wildlife conservation. 

 The first couple of months working at the Desert National Wildlife Refuge’s Corn Creek Visitor Center by Las Vegas have been fantastic. Essentially, I am ~50% Visitor Services and ~50% Refuge intern. On weekends, I am usually by the front desk greeting visitors, walking trails, driving the back country to check on visitors, checking on inventory, and/or helping with any events we have such as an art gallery install. The other half is spent with biology and other refuge tasks, where it would be impossible to write all about in one blog post! Wildlife Refuges can be especially understaffed and have high rates of turnover, resulting in other staff or interns like me to help fill in. Every week, I earn all kinds of new experiences that build me as a person and candidate.

A notable experience I recently had was having to hike 17 miles. The refuge biologist and I needed to hike to a remote spring site, where a tub was installed to secure drinking water for the Refuge's Desert Bighorn Sheep. These sites need to be regularly checked on to ensure they are in good condition or in need of repair. This hike was the toughest hike I had ever been on. A few light snowstorms hit us (Nevada is named from Spanish to describe the snow-capped mountains, it’s not all hot deserts!) on our way up, as clouds carrying these small storms traveled through the mountains. We realized then we would be back at the car at or after sunset, after leaving early before sunrise in the morning. We rewarded ourselves with Burger King on our way back home.

Days like that are really fun, despite the daunting nature of forcing your body to push through exhaustion. I have done plenty of tough hikes and runs before, so I felt prepared and safe doing this hike. This career field can really inspire you to realize you are more capable than you think you are. I remember one of my first hikes that was only 3-5 miles, on a paved road, being too much for me when I was about 13. I thought to myself I would never do a hike again, but that was before I got into science and conservation. I saw a new bird (the non-native chukar) for my bird list, which made the hike more than worth it. Birds are what got me into wildlife conservation, and it is because of that interest that I am particularly interested in the mission of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Working on a Wildlife Refuge allows for me to see awesome, remote places that few ever get to see, even if it means a tough hike.

Other cool tasks from my internship have included rocket netting (capture, banding, and release of waterfowl), volunteer training, coordinating with Latino Outdoors, becoming Puddles the Blue Goose mascot for USFWS, and driving around scenic highways and refuge back roads.