Rate My Professor Duncan Irschick

Duncan J. Irschick is a Professor of Biology in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he also serves as Graduate Program Director. He earned his B.S. from the University of California, Davis in 1991 and his Ph.D. from Washington University, St. Louis in 1996. Irschick is an integrative biologist and innovator focused on the evolution and ecology of animal athletics and the ways biological form informs synthetic design. His research interests include gecko adhesion, 3D imaging, animal movement, and bioinspiration. He directs the Irschick Lab, which studies sexual selection, biomechanics, gecko adhesion, animal performance in natural environments, and body shape and condition in megafauna such as sharks and sea turtles using advanced technologies including custom force plates and 3D photogrammetry.

Irschick is the co-founder and director of the Digital Life Project, which has produced open-access 3D models downloaded over 200,000 times for applications in science, education, and conservation. He co-directs the Center for Evolutionary Materials and is a co-inventor of GeckskinTM, a bioinspired superadhesive, and BeastcamTM, a portable multi-camera system for high-resolution 3D models of living creatures. He has authored 137 papers on animal function and evolution, including highly cited publications such as "Integrating function and ecology in studies of adaptation: investigations of locomotor capacity as a model system" (Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics, 2001), "A comparative analysis of clinging ability among pad-bearing lizards" (Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 1996), and "How does selection operate on whole-organism functional performance capacities? A review and synthesis" (Evolutionary Ecology Research, 2008). His research has secured funding from the NIH and NSF, earned media coverage from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CNET.org, and CNN, and resulted in several patents. Awards include the Outstanding Research Award (2014), Chancellor's Medal (2016), Distinguished Faculty Lecture Award (2016), and the 2026-2027 Samuel F. Conti Faculty Fellowship Award. Irschick has given 76 invited talks worldwide, including as keynote and plenary speaker.