The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience
Kaylee Hargis grew up in Cleveland, Ohio and is a recent 2020 graduate from the University of Dayton. She has achieved her Bachelors of Science in Psychology with a minor in biology. Kaylee has been fascinated by sea turtles since she could remember, but did not decide to pursue this passion until she went on a study abroad program to Hawai'i during the summer of 2019. In December of 2019 Kaylee traveled to Playa Grande, Costa Rica to volunteer with The Leatherback Trust. This is where she confirmed her passion and changed her life's plan. In Costa Rica, she immersed herself in nesting work, researching Leatherback, Olive Ridley and Green Sea Turtle nesting and hatching rates. After graduating, Kaylee moved to Florida to be the turtle intern for the Volusia County Marine Science Center for six months. After this internship she traveled south to Juno Beach and was the sea turtle rehabilitation intern for Loggerhead Marinelife Center.
Kaylee is looking forward to learning more about fibropapillomas in sea turtles and all the research being conducted here at the Whitney Lab!