Rate My Professor William W. Murdoch

William W. Murdoch is Research Professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he joined the faculty in 1965 as the Charles A. Storke II Professor of Population Ecology. A native of Scotland, he earned a Ph.D. in zoology from the University of Oxford and completed postdoctoral research at the University of Michigan. His research specializes in population ecology within Biology, particularly the dynamics of interacting predator and prey populations, biological control of agricultural pests such as the California red scale, and consumer-resource interactions. Murdoch integrates empirical field experiments with mathematical modeling to advance theories on population regulation, stability, and abundance factors. He has authored influential works including the book Consumer-Resource Dynamics with Cheryl J. Briggs and Roger M. Nisbet, and key papers such as "Population Regulation in Theory and Practice" (Ecology, 1994) and "Biological Control in Theory and Practice" (American Naturalist, 1985).

Murdoch's distinguished career includes serving as chair of the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology for four years, founding director of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, and director of the UCSB Natural Reserve System. He has held visiting professorships at UC Berkeley, University of Michigan, University College London, and others, and contributed to advisory committees like the Marine Review Committee of the California Coastal Commission and the board of The Nature Conservancy. His impact on the field is evident in the development and experimental validation of new population dynamics theories, influencing conservation strategies and pest management. Major honors include the 2004 UCSB Faculty Research Lectureship, the 1990 Robert H. MacArthur Award from the Ecological Society of America, Guggenheim Fellowship, AAAS Fellowship in 2014, election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2002, President's Award from the American Society of Naturalists, and the Huffaker Medal in Population Ecology.