Alexander Bruttel  - Technical assistant at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology

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​​I grew up in a small village in Germany, far away from wild animals and science. However, early on I developed a passion for the ocean world and its creatures, and my hero became Jacques Cousteau. On every seaside vacation with my parents I would spend most of the time with a snorkel and swimming goggles exploring the underwater landscape and its residents. Later came my fascination turned to reptiles and arachnids, so I decided (against the will of my mother) to keep scorpions, arachnids and bearded dragons at home in a terrarium. I found it very interesting to observe these creatures in my own created environment. 
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Even before I finished school, it was clear to me that I would like to have a profession in which I could work with animals. So I decided to do an apprenticeship as an animal care taker for science at the University of Konstanz. The experience of my apprenticeship, however, was sobering because I spent the most of my time breeding mice. I don't want to say that I did not enjoy the work, but looking back on my real interests, I knew that my career goal should be different. In 2012 I began working for the Max-Planck Institute for Ornithology as an animal care taker, and soon after, I had opportunities to participate more directly in science. I took every chance to help scientists in their various projects, using experience I had gathered in my previous years of work. In 2015, I asked about the possibility of working as a technical assistant in the Department of Collective Behavior under Iain Couzin. Today as a member of the group I feel I have arrived at a better place for me, and look forward to much more work in the field and lab. It is the mixture of animal research and technology that motivates me to help scientists achieve their goals, and create new knowledge.