Caitlin Daley

Senior Ecologist
Ōtepoti Dunedin 📍

Caitlin joined Whirika in August 2025, bringing extensive experience in native plant horticulture, large-scale restoration, pest and weed control, GIS mapping, and ecological project management. She has worked closely with farmers, iwi, councils, NGOs, and community groups, building collaborative approaches to conservation that protect biodiversity on rural land.

For five years, she led the Tiaki Maniototo Project, overseeing restoration initiatives and providing technical botanical and ecological advice, particularly for the Upper Taieri Scroll Plains. She has also delivered complex ecological restoration projects for various organisations, including willow control and restoration through the ORC Ecofund, Manaaki Whenua wetland vegetation surveys, ecological monitoring, and native plant propagation in Wānaka and Dunedin.

Her specialist areas include restoration ecology, ephemeral wetland systems, pest management, project facilitation, and catchment action planning. She has completed the Aotearoa Catchment Extension Programme and is finalising her PhD in Botany, which explores ecological and community measures of “success” in restoration projects.

Outside of work, she enjoys spearfishing, diving, hunting, gardening, and spending time outdoors with her partner Will and their two dogs, Ruby and Honey. Passionate about healthy ecosystems on both land and sea, she values sustainable ways of gathering kai and protecting the environments that provide it.

Qualifications:

• PhD (Botany) – in progress

• PgDipSci (Botany), University of Otago (2021)

• BSc (Botany), University of Otago (2019)

Get In Touch!
caitlin.daley@whirika.co.nz
027-243-3840