John Edward Morton (18 July 1923 – 6 March 2011) was a

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researche ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, and conservationist from New Zealand. Trained at

Auckland University College , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

and the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

, he became the

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

of numerous books, papers, and

newspaper column A column is a recurring piece or article in a newspaper, magazine or other publication, where a writer expresses their own opinion in few columns allotted to them by the newspaper organisation. Columns are written by columnists. What different ...

s. Morton researched New Zealand's

ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

and

marine life Marine life, sea life, or ocean life is the plants, animals and other organisms that live in the salt water of seas or oceans, or the brackish water of coastal estuaries. At a fundamental level, marine life affects the nature of the planet. M ...

, and was a marine zoologist. He was also the presenter of the imported nature and science

television programme A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...

, ''Our World''.

Early life

Born in

Morrinsville Morrinsville is a provincial town in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island, with an estimated population of as of The town is located at the northern base of the Pakaroa Range, and on the south-western fringe of the Hauraki Plains. ...

on 18 July 1923, Morton was the son of Ronald Bampton Morton. He was educated at Morrinsville District High School, and went on to study zoology at Auckland University College, graduating with the degree of MSc with first-class honours in 1948. In 1952 he completed his PhD, followed in 1959 by a

DSc DSC may refer to: Academia * 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 * Dalton State Col ...

, at the

. During this time he was also a lecturer in the zoology department at the same university.

Career

On his return from London in the early 1960s, he became the first person to be appointed to the chair of the School of Zoology and Biological Sciences at the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

, a position he held from 1959 to 1988. He was considered at this time one of New Zealand's most talented up-and-coming academics, and was later regarded by many as one of New Zealand's greatest marine biologists. His teaching style and influence have been well-documented in ''A History of Biology at Auckland University 1883–1983''. He believed in "humanising" complex scientific issues, and presenting them in laymen's language. Morton was also regarded as one of New Zealand's leading Christian academics and believed in a unified view of

science and religion The relationship between religion and science involves discussions that interconnect the study of the natural world, history, philosophy, and theology. Even though the ancient and medieval worlds did not have conceptions resembling the modern u ...

. He told ''

The New Zealand Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation of all newspapers ...

'' upon his retirement in 1988 that "I find that my scientific work has confirmed my Christian convictions. To me biology and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

complement each other." In his 1984 book ''Redeeming Creation'' he acknowledged the influence of the French

palaeontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

Teilhard de Chardin Pierre Teilhard de Chardin ( (); 1 May 1881 – 10 April 1955) was a French Jesuit priest, scientist, paleontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and ...

in forming the

teleological Teleology (from and )Partridge, Eric. 1977''Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English'' London: Routledge, p. 4187. or finalityDubray, Charles. 2020 912Teleology" In ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'' 14. New York: Robert Appleton ...

view he expounded in his academic life. Morton did much for conservation in New Zealand. In 1975, he was a leader in the establishment of New Zealand's first

marine reserve A marine reserve is a type of marine protected area (MPA). An MPA is a section of the ocean where a government has placed limits on human activity. A marine reserve is a marine protected area in which removing or destroying natural or cultural ...

, Cape Rodney-Okakari Point Marine Reserve (which is near Cape Rodney and

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staf ...

and includes

Te Hāwere-a-Maki / Goat Island Goat Island or Te Hāwere-a-Maki is a tiny island (approximately ) in New Zealand located close to the North Island coast, north of Auckland, northeast of Warkworth, and directly west of Little Barrier Island. It is within Cape Rodney-Okakari P ...

). He led the conservation movement to a series of victories in the 1970s and 1980s, which saved the last of New Zealand's mainland native forests, Pureora, Whirinaki, Waitututu and

South Westland Westland District is a territorial authority district on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is administered by the Westland District Council. The district's population is History Westland was originally a part of Canterbury Pro ...

from

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...

. He served on the

Auckland Regional Authority The Auckland Regional Council (ARC) was the regional council (one of the former local government authorities) of the Auckland Region. Its predecessor the Auckland Regional Authority (ARA) was formed in 1963 and became the ARC in 1989. The ARC ...

from 1971 to 1974 for

Takapuna Takapuna is a suburb located on the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. The suburb is situated at the beginning of a south-east-facing peninsula forming the northern side of the Waitematā Harbour. While very small in terms of population, it ...

, losing his re-election bid after switching his party affiliation to

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

. In 1989 he became a founding member of the New Labour Party, which in 1991 formed a coalition with other parties called the

Alliance An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

. Notable students of Morton's include

Patricia Bergquist Dame Patricia Rose Bergquist (née Smyth, 10 March 1933 – 9 September 2009) was a New Zealand zoologist who specialised in anatomy and taxonomy. At the time of her death, she was professor emerita of zoology and honorary professor of anatomy ...

and

John Croxall John Patrick Croxall (born 19 January 1946 in Birmingham) is a British biologist, and was Head of Conservation Biology at the British Antarctic Survey. He is Chair of Global Seabird Programme, of BirdLife International. Life Croxall completed a ...

. Morton died at his home in Auckland on 6 March 2011.

Honours and awards

Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

(1969) * Honorary Fellow of

Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...

(HonFLS) *

Companion of the Queen's Service Order The Queen's Service Order, established by royal warrant of Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, is used to recognise "valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the pu ...

for public services in the 1986 Queen's Birthday Honours * Winner of Wattie Book of the Year 1968, for ''The New Zealand sea shore'', together with Michael C. Miller *In 1965, malacologist

Winston Ponder Winston Frank Ponder (born 1941) is a noted malacologist born and educated in New Zealand who has named and described many marine and freshwater animals, especially micromolluscs. Education and career Ponder graduated with an MSc, PhD (1968) ...

named the gastropod species '' Eatoniella mortoni'' after Morton.

Selected bibliography

*''Seashore ecology of New Zealand and the Pacific''. John Edward Morton, Bruce William Hayward. Bateman, 2004. , . *''The shore ecology of Upolu – Western Samoa''. Issue 31 of Leigh Lab. bulletin. John Edward Morton, Andrew Jeffs, Leigh Marine Laboratory. University of Auckland, 1993. *''Shore life between Fundy tides''. John Edward Morton, J. C. Roff, Mary Beverley-Burton. Canadian Scholars Press, 1991. *''The shore ecology of the tropical Pacific''. John Edward Morton. Unesco Regional Office for Science and Technology for South-East Asia, 1990. *''Christ, creation, and the environment''. John Edward Morton. Anglican Communications, 1989. , . *''Marine molluscs: Opisthobranchia, Part 2''. Richard Carden Willan, John Edward Morton, John Walsby, Leigh Marine Laboratory, University of Auckland, 1984. *''The sea shore ecology of Hong Kong''. Brian Morton, John Edward Morton. The University of Hong Kong, 1983. . *''Marine molluscs: Amphineura, archaeogastropoda & pulmonata, Part 1''. Issue 4 of Leigh Lab. bulletin. John Walsby, John Edward Morton, Leigh Marine Laboratory, University of Auckland, 1982. *''Molluscs''. John Edward Morton. Hutchinson University Library, 1979. *''Seacoast in the seventies: the future of the New Zealand shoreline''. John Edward Morton, David A. Thom, Ronald Harry Locker. Hodder and Stoughton, 1973. *''Man, science and God''. John Edward Morton. Collins, 1972. *''The New Zealand sea shore''. John Edward Morton, Michael C. Miller. Collins, 1968.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, John 1923 births 2011 deaths Alliance (New Zealand political party) politicians Alumni of the University of London Auckland regional councillors New Zealand Christian writers Companions of the Queen's Service Order Fellows of the Linnean Society of London Fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand Marine zoologists NewLabour Party (New Zealand) politicians New Zealand biologists New Zealand Labour Party politicians Theistic evolutionists University of Auckland alumni Academic staff of the University of Auckland Writers about religion and science People from Morrinsville People educated at Morrinsville College