When it comes to rolling up her sleeves and diving into Mississippi’s wild side, Zoe Mabry, our Environmental Resources Technician, is always up for the adventure! Whether she’s setting nets for turtles, organizing the Museum’s natural history collection, or searching for critters on field surveys, Zoe brings passion and curiosity to everything she does. Read more about Zoe’s inspiring story, her love for reptiles and amphibians, and her incredible contributions to conservation.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED FOR MDWFP’S MISSISSIPPI MUSEUM OF NATURAL SCIENCE?
I have worked at the Museum since the beginning of May 2024.
WHAT’S YOUR WORKDAY LIKE?
My workdays can vary depending on the task at hand.
For days in the field, you can find me working closely with a multitude of differing species such as turtles, fish, and mussels to crayfish, snails, and even bees. Tasks on field days can include setting up nets, catching and measuring animals, as well as chipping individuals with tag readers for later identification.
When I am at the Museum, a typical day can include typing up tags for the specimens, organizing the collection, and helping with identifying species.
ANY FUNNY WORK STORIES?
While there’s been a number of silly events that have happened since I’ve begun working here, one such story comes to mind.
A group of us went up to the Pickwick Reservoir to conduct mussel surveys in Tishomingo County. We had heard of an interesting area called Goat Island in another part of the reservoir, so we decided to check it out because who doesn't love goats, am I right?
Well, we finally got to the revered Goat Island and lo and behold there was a welcoming committee of goats awaiting us at the shore. As we stepped off the boat, the herd of goats surrounded us, absolutely begging for pets. There was one large billy goat present, who was pretty flirtatious with the does, but we thought nothing of it and went on ahead to giving him pets, too.
Little did we know the male's face was covered in urine and unfortunately now our hands were, too!
TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND AND EDUCATION
I grew up in the areas of Jackson and Madison, Mississippi and was always outside. You could catch me playing with mud, catching fireflies, and pocketing various lizards and toads. As a child, I spent my time running around the neighborhood with my cousins and friends, building forts and playing make believe as different animals.
On the rare occasion I would be inside, I would usually watch Animal Planet with my family. I especially loved Steve Irwin because he was so passionate about each and every animal he came upon. He always took the time to share his love for nature and the critters that resided in it. I took his passion in stride and I became inspired by him to care and advocate for all nature's precious things from animals to the environment itself.
My father was also an inspiration for me. He worked the paper route when I was young and every day he would come home gushing about all the animals he would see on the Natchez Trace in the early morning hours. On occasion, I would join him on his routes and get to see foxes, turkeys, armadillos, and deer walking about peacefully before the onrush of traffic would begin. Steve and my father's work really pushed me to be in the field I am in today.
However, I did not always want to be a biologist. For a long time, I wanted to be a Wildlife Artist and pursued an education with that in mind for a short time. When I began college, I started to learn more about conservation and decided to change the course of my career path.
I thus started attending Southern Miss in Hattiesburg and found my calling. That is when I truly began my journey in conservation and have now graduated with a B.S. in Conservation Biology. I will eventually attend grad school for my Master's in Behavioral Herpetology.
I do not have too many hobbies outside of animals and nature. I love to hike and walk outside, and I especially love herping in the woods, which is basically just scrounging around for amphibians and reptiles under logs and leaf litter. I also really love anime, and have since I was a small child.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS CAREER?
I chose this career because I have always had an admiration for nature and its' wild inhabitants.
Every organism whether plant, fungi, mammal, fish, reptile, what have you, brings nothing but utter joy to me. I find I am the happiest when I am interacting with animals, so being in a career that advocates for these organisms makes me feel like I am doing something truly worth while.
I find myself sad at times when I think about encroaching climate change, irreversible loss of fauna, and destruction of vital ecosystems but I hope with another individual, such as myself, joining the team for environmental and wildlife advocacy can make some sort of change for the better, especially for the organisms that have no way of defending themselves against anthropogenic destruction of the natural world.
HOW DOES YOUR JOB CONTRIBUTE TO CONSERVATION?
My job contributes to conservation by aiding the wildlife biologists at the Museum. Among the various tasks I do here, organizing the natural history collection and aiding in field work surveys that they conduct are some of the most important jobs I help with.
The collection houses all of our specimens which includes locations, dates, and other details that would help with future studies about varying species. This, along with surveys conducted and directed by the Museum biologists, provide information on a species’ overall prosperity and can help push for change such as what is causing certain species' populations to decline, how quickly that decline is progressing, and what actions can be taken to not only stop it but help reverse the damage.
ANY ADVICE FOR A STUDENT INTERESTED IN A BIOLOGY OR MUSEUM CAREER?
My advice would be to not give up.
College can be hard, especially when it comes to Biology, but in my opinion, it is one of the most rewarding ventures one can accomplish. Taking things one step at a time can make reaching the end goal not so foreboding.
So, talking with professors about your concerns and interests is really important to gaining a well-rounded understanding of what one needs to do to be in this field and achieve a successful career.
Asking about opportunities for volunteer work and research labs is key in gaining experience and building up one's CV even before graduating. Once you have done that, you are already a step ahead in an already competitive field!
