Duncan Murdock

Earth Scientist

I am fascinated by how rocks and fossils can reveal the deep history of our planet and the life it supports. I like to think of them as time machines to the distant past. I’m responsible for the mineral, rock and early life fossil collections at Oxford University Museum of Natural History. Before coming to Oxford in 2017, I studied geology at the University of Leicester followed by a PhD in palaeobiology at the University of Bristol, and several post-doctoral positions at Leicester, Bristol, and Oxford. My research interests are around the early evolution of animal life, particularly their skeletons; what process allow fossils to be preserved at all and how they might bias our interpretation of those fossils; and, an extinct group of jawless fish, the conodonts.

I helped to uncover a huge set of dinosaur trackways in Oxfordshire. Find out more about Britain’s Dinosaur Highway here.