Mitchell Durno Murray (1925 – 25 April 2009) was an Australian
veterinary scientist, and an
ornithologist
Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...
with a particular interest in
seabirds
Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same envi ...
. He was born and educated in England before moving to New Zealand and then Australia. He was the first regional organiser for New South Wales of the
Australian Bird Banding Scheme. He was instrumental in establishing the
New South Wales Albatross Study Group, now the
Southern Oceans Seabird Study Association (SOSSA). He was President of the
Australian Bird Study Association 1973–1974, Editor of its journal ''
Corella'' 1990–1994, and largely responsible for its 'Seabird Islands' series.
Awards
In 1996 he was awarded the
RAOU's
John Hobbs Medal
BirdLife Australia is a not-for-profit organisation advocating for native birds and the conservation of their habitats across Australia.
BirdLife Australia is the trading name of the company limited by guarantee formed through the merger of tw ...
for outstanding contributions to Australian ornithology as an amateur. In 2009 he was awarded an Honorary
DSc DSC or Dsc may refer to:
Education
* Doctor of Science (D.Sc.)
* District Selection Committee, an entrance exam in India
* Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine
Educational institutions
* Dyal Sin ...
by the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...
.
See also
*
List of ornithologists
__NOTOC__
This is a list of ornithologists who have articles, in alphabetical order by surname. See also :Ornithologists.
A
* John Abbot – US
* Clinton Gilbert Abbott – US
* William Louis Abbott – US
* Humayun Abdulali — India
* Joseph ...
Bibliography
From the 1990s Murray has been part of a research team studying the movements of
albatross
Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds related to the procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Paci ...
es, especially
wandering albatross
The snowy albatross (''Diomedea exulans''), also known as the wandering albatross, white-winged albatross, or goonie, is a large seabird from the family Diomedeidae
Albatrosses, of the biological family (biology), family Diomedeidae, are la ...
es, ''Diomedea exulans''. Some papers resulting from this collaborative research are:
* Nicholls, David; Murray, Durno; Battam, Harry; Robertson, Graham; Moors, Philip; Butcher, Eric; & Hildebrandt, Michael. (1995). Satellite tracking of the Wandering Albatross, ''Diomedea exulans'', around Australia and in the Indian Ocean. ''EMU'' 95: 223–230.
* Nicholls, D.G.; Murray, M.D.; Butcher, E.; & Moors, P. (1997). Weather systems determine the non-breeding distribution of Wandering Albatrosses over southern oceans. ''EMU'' 97: 240–244.
* Nicholls, D.G.; Murray, M.D.; Butcher, E.C.; & Moors, P.J. (2000). Time spent in Exclusive Economic Zones of southern oceans by non-breeding Wandering Albatrosses (''Diomedea'' spp.): implications for national responsibilities for conservation. ''EMU'' 100: 318–323.
* Murray, M.D.; Nicholls, D.G.; Butcher, E.C.; & Moors, P. (2002). How Wandering Albatrosses use weather systems to fly long distances. 1. An analytical method and its application to flights in the Tasman Sea. ''EMU'' 102: 377–385.
* Murray, M. D.; Nicholls, D. G.; Butcher, E.; & Moors, P.J. (2003). How Wandering Albatrosses use weather systems to fly long distances. 2. The use of eastward-moving cold fronts from Antarctic lows to travel westwards across the Indian Ocean. ''EMU'' 103: 59–65.
* Murray, M.D.; Nicholls, D.G.; Butcher, E.C.; Moors, P.; Walker, K.; & Elliott, G. (2003). How Wandering Albatrosses use weather systems to fly long distances. 3. The contributions of Antarctic lows to eastward, southward and northward flight. ''EMU'' 103: 111–120.
References
* BirdLife International. (2004). ''Tracking ocean wanderers: the global distribution of albatrosses and petrels. Results from the Global Procellariiform Tracking Workshop, 1–5 September 2003, Gordon's Bay, South Africa''. BirdLife International: Cambridge, UK.
* Robin, Libby. (2001). ''The Flight of the Emu: a hundred years of Australian ornithology 1901-2001''. Carlton, Vic. Melbourne University Press.
Bright Sparcs entry on Durno Murray
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Mitchell Durno
Australian ornithologists
1925 births
2009 deaths
Australian veterinarians
20th-century Australian zoologists
British emigrants to Australia