Diane De Luca, a seasoned member of the Conservation Department, made her way to NH Audubon after working on Seabird Restoration off the coast of Maine and teaching ornithology at the Hog Island Audubon Camp. In many ways it is a dream job as it allowed her to follow her passion for birds and stay involved in teaching.

Diane has been responsible for the monitoring and management of several endangered and threatened bird species including winter eagles, grassland birds, and high elevation forest birds. For many years her work focused on coastal species with project leadership of the Tern Restoration Project at the Isles of Shoals and long term monitoring of the Upland Sandpiper at the Pease International Tradeport. Diane shares that “getting back to coastal work brought her full circle and was most definitely a ‘heart’ project.”

Currently, she is involved in establishing and maintaining pollinator habitat, and a long term phenology project to document response to climate change. In the last couple of years, she has been honored to join the team that is tagging Monarch butterflies as part of the larger Motus project (pictured releasing a tagged Monarch). She is grateful to have the opportunity to expand her knowledge of the natural world, and to work alongside the many volunteers who make all of it possible.