Luz Hunter

Luz was born and raised in Belize City along with two brothers and six sisters. As a child she always felt the need to protect animals, both wild and domestic. Alternating summers between grandparents on the cayes and in the bush brought her very close to nature and she soon realized that the hardest part of going back to school was sitting down…indoors. One thing led to another and by 1980, Luz was “guiding” people around the reefs near Ambergris Caye and Lighthouse Reef.

For the next three decades she traveled throughout Belize on chartered sailboats, cruising yachts, and live-aboard dive boats. Between jobs she headed to the mountains and savannas where the birds, mammals, reptiles and insects intrigued her. Her hobby at the time led Luz to Guatemala, Mexico, and Honduras as a birding, archaeology and natural history guide. She was fortunate to have some outstanding teachers who taught her that knowledge is nothing if it is not passed on to someone else, and the next two decades brought two new passions to her life, conservation and teaching.

As a member of the board at Belize Audubon Society during the nineties, Luz was involved in the establishment of several protected areas. The last couple decades have kept her busy leading student groups, training guides for the Belize Tourism Board, and leading Bird Counts countrywide. Currently, protection of hawksbill turtles and manatees has become a priority and she is committed to increase efforts to protect and preserve these species and their habitats.