Droser says that spending summers with her family on Shelter Island, New York first inspired her interest in the natural world. She says, "At age 5 I announced I wanted to be a marine biologist, then by age 10 I’d decided to become a geologist".[1]
In 2008, Droser's discovery of the fossilFunisia dorothea in Australia was published in the journal Science.[4]Funisia is a single-species genus of upright worm-like animals that lived 555 million years ago.[5]Funisia was hailed as the first known species to sexually reproduce.[1] She named the species to honor her mother, Dorothy Droser, saying "She's come with me on digs and done all the cooking and taken care of the kids. It seemed the right thing to do."[6][4]
Droser named the fossil Obamus, after U.S. president Barack Obama.[7] In 2018, while exploring the Flinders Ranges, over 200 km (120 mi) north of Adelaide in South Australia, Droser's team found the 550-million-year-old fossil. She explained that the creature resembled an ear, a distinctive feature of Obama, and so named it for the former president.[7]
On the same trip to the Flinders Ranges in 2018, the team also discovered the fossil Attenborites janeae, which Droser named for naturalist Sir David Attenborough.[7]