Overview
Background
I am a marine ecologist research fellow at UQ, specialising in global and regional marine ecosystem modelling, particulalry focused on the Southern Ocean. My research uses mathematical models to understand and predict how climate change and fishing impact marine ecosystems.
Current research focus:
- Leading development of the Zooplankton Model of Size Spectra (ZooMSS) for an ARC Discovery Project on zooplankton and the ocean carbon cycle
- Enhancing models of fish population dynamics, fishing impacts, and temperature-dependent physiology
- Improving representation of mesopelagic ecosystems in climate projections
I co-coordinate the Southern Ocean Working Group of FishMIP (Fisheries and Marine Ecosystem Model Intercomparison Project), facilitating international collaboration on marine ecosystem projections under global change. My expertise in size-structured food web modelling has advanced understanding of cephalopod ecology and improved biological realism in marine ecosystem models.
Availability
- Dr Kieran Murphy is:
- Available for supervision
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Masters (Research) of Biology, Saint Francis Xavier University
- Doctor of Philosophy of Marine Science, University of Tasmania
Research interests
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Marine ecosystem modelling under climate change and fishing pressure
I develop and apply size-structured food web models to project how marine ecosystems respond to combined climate change and fishing impacts, with particular focus on the Southern Ocean. My work integrates temperature-dependent physiology, trophic interactions, and fishing mortality to improve ecosystem-level projections. This research contributes to FishMIP model intercomparisons and supports sustainable fisheries management under global change.
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Pelagic ecosystems and the ocean carbon cycle
I lead development of the Zooplankton Model of Size Spectra (ZooMSS) to better understand zooplankton's role in ocean carbon cycling and climate regulation. My research enhances representation of zooplankton community structure, predator-prey interactions, and carbon flux processes including the biological pump. This work advances predictions of marine ecosystem responses to environmental change and their feedbacks to Earth's climate system.
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Southern Ocean regional ecosystem modelling for policy-relevant science
I develop regional ecosystem models for the Southern Ocean that provide policy-relevant projections of ecosystem responses to climate change and fishing. My research generates scientific information on ecosystem dynamics, species interactions, and environmental change that can inform fisheries management frameworks and marine conservation planning. This work contributes to the scientific foundation for policy discussions through FishMIP and connections to bodies such as CCAMLR.
Research impacts
My research supports sustainable management of marine resources and climate adaptation planning for ocean ecosystems.
Key impacts:
- FishMIP contributes to IPCC and IPBES assessments that inform international climate and biodiversity policy
- Advancing understanding of the ocean carbon cycle through ZooMSS development, critical for predicting Earth's climate future
- Providing fisheries and conservation decision makers with tools to anticipate ecosystem responses to combined climate and fishing pressures
This work enables evidence-based decision-making for sustainable use of marine resources while protecting ecosystem function under global change.
Works
Search Professor Kieran Murphy’s works on UQ eSpace
2025
Journal Article
Developing a southern ocean marine ecosystem model ensemble to assess climate risks and uncertainties
Murphy, Kieran, Fierro‐Arcos, Denisse, Rohr, Tyler, Green, David, Novaglio, Camilla, Baker, Katherine, Ortega‐Cisneros, Kelly, Eddy, Tyler D., Harrison, Cheryl S., Hill, Simeon L., Eskuche‐Keith, Patrick, Cataldo‐Mendez, Camila, Petrik, Colleen M., Pinkerton, Matthew, Spence, Paul, Stollberg, Ilaria, Subramaniam, Roshni C., Trebilco, Rowan, Tulloch, Vivitskaia, Palacios‐Abrantes, Juliano, Bestley, Sophie, Bianchi, Daniele, Boyd, Philip, Buchanan, Pearse J., Bryndum‐Buchholz, Andrea, Coll, Marta, Corney, Stuart, Datta, Samik, Everett, Jason D. ... Blanchard, Julia (2025). Developing a southern ocean marine ecosystem model ensemble to assess climate risks and uncertainties. Earth's Future, 13 (3) e2024EF004849. doi: 10.1029/2024ef004849
2025
Journal Article
Pathways for converting zooplankton traits to ecological insights are paved with findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) data practices
Titocci, Jessica, Pata, Patrick R., Durazzano, Tiziana, Ayata, Sakina-Dorothee, Clerc, Corentin, Cornils, Astrid, Duffy, Patrick, Greer, Adam T., Halsband, Claudia, Heneghan, Ryan F., Lacoursiere-Roussel, Anais, Lombard, Fabien, Majaneva, Sanna, Pakhomov, Evgeny A., Reis, Carolina, Rist, Sinja, Rommel, Alix C. M., Silva, Teresa, Stemmann, Lars, Ugwu, Kevin, Basset, Alberto, Rosati, Ilaria, Murphy, Kieran J. and Hunt, Brian P. (2025). Pathways for converting zooplankton traits to ecological insights are paved with findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) data practices. Ices Journal of Marine Science, 82 (2) fsaf017. doi: 10.1093/icesjms/fsaf017
2025
Journal Article
An Integrated Global-To-Regional Scale Workflow for Simulating Climate Change Impacts on Marine Ecosystems
Ortega-Cisneros, Kelly, Fierros-Arcos, Denisse, Lindmark, Max, Novaglio, Camilla, Woodworth-Jefcoats, Phoebe, Eddy, Tyler D., Coll, Marta, Fulton, Elizabeth, Oliveros-Ramos, Ricardo, Reum, Jonathan, Shin, Yunne-Jai, Bulman, Cathy, Capitani, Leonardo, Datta, Samik, Murphy, Kieran, Rogers, Alice, Shannon, Lynne, Whitehouse, George A., Adekoya, Ezekiel, Dias, Beatriz S., Fuster-Alonso, Alba, Hansen, Cecilie, Husson, Berengere, Mcgregor, Vidette, Morell, Alaia, Morzaria Luna, Hem-Nalini, Ouled-Cheikh, Jazel, Ruzicka, James, Steenbeek, Jeroen ... Blanchard, Julia L. (2025). An Integrated Global-To-Regional Scale Workflow for Simulating Climate Change Impacts on Marine Ecosystems. Earths Future, 13 (2) e2024EF004826. doi: 10.1029/2024EF004826
2024
Journal Article
Detecting, Attributing, and Projecting Global Marine Ecosystem and Fisheries Change: FishMIP 2.0
Blanchard, Julia L., Novaglio, Camilla, Maury, Olivier, Harrison, Cheryl S., Petrik, Colleen M., Fierro-Arcos, Denisse, Ortega-Cisneros, Kelly, Bryndum-Buchholz, Andrea, Eddy, Tyler D., Heneghan, Ryan, Roberts, Kelsey, Schewe, Jacob, Bianchi, Daniele, Guiet, Jerome, Daniel van Denderen, P., Palacios-Abrantes, Juliano, Liu, Xiao, Stock, Charles A., Rousseau, Yannick, Buechner, Matthias, Adekoya, Ezekiel O., Bulman, Cathy, Cheung, William, Christensen, Villy, Coll, Marta, Capitani, Leonardo, Datta, Samik, Fulton, Elizabeth A., Fuster, Alba ... Tittensor, Derek P. (2024). Detecting, Attributing, and Projecting Global Marine Ecosystem and Fisheries Change: FishMIP 2.0. Earths Future, 12 (12) e2023EF004402. doi: 10.1029/2023EF004402
2024
Journal Article
(Epi)genomic adaptation driven by fine geographical scale environmental heterogeneity after recent biological invasions
Chen, Yiyong, Ni, Ping, Fu, Ruiying, Murphy, Kieran J. J., Wyeth, Russell C. C., Bishop, Cory D. D., Huang, Xuena, Li, Shiguo and Zhan, Aibin (2024). (Epi)genomic adaptation driven by fine geographical scale environmental heterogeneity after recent biological invasions. Ecological Applications, 34 (1) e2772, 1-21. doi: 10.1002/eap.2772
2023
Journal Article
Improving the biological realism of predator–prey size relationships in food web models alters ecosystem dynamics
Murphy, Kieran J., Pecl, Gretta T., Everett, Jason D., Heneghan, Ryan F., Richards, Shane A., Richardson, Anthony J., Semmens, Jayson M. and Blanchard, Julia L. (2023). Improving the biological realism of predator–prey size relationships in food web models alters ecosystem dynamics. Biology Letters, 19 (10) 20230142, 1-6. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2023.0142
2022
Journal Article
Ecological Review of the <i>Ciona</i> Species Complex
Wilson, Emmerson R., Murphy, Kieran J. and Wyeth, Russell C. (2022). Ecological Review of the Ciona Species Complex. Biological Bulletin, 242 (2), 153-171. doi: 10.1086/719476
2020
Journal Article
A cross-scale framework to support a mechanistic understanding and modelling of marine climate-driven species redistribution, from individuals to communities
Twiname, Samantha, Audzijonyte, Asta, Blanchard, Julia L., Champion, Curtis, de la Chesnais, Thibaut, Fitzgibbon, Quinn P., Fogarty, Hannah E., Hobday, Alistair J., Kelly, Rachel, Murphy, Kieran J., Oellermann, Michael, Peinado, Patricia, Tracey, Sean, Villanueva, Cecilia, Wolfe, Barrett and Pecl, Gretta T. (2020). A cross-scale framework to support a mechanistic understanding and modelling of marine climate-driven species redistribution, from individuals to communities. Ecography, 43 (12), 1764-1778. doi: 10.1111/ecog.04996
2020
Journal Article
Functional traits explain trophic allometries of cephalopods
Murphy, Kieran J., Pecl, Gretta T., Richards, Shane A., Semmens, Jayson M., Revill, Andrew T., Suthers, Iain M., Everett, Jason D., Trebilco, Rowan and Blanchard, Julia L. (2020). Functional traits explain trophic allometries of cephalopods. Journal of Animal Ecology, 89 (11) 1365-2656.13333, 2692-2703. doi: 10.1111/1365-2656.13333
2019
Journal Article
Abiotic conditions are not sufficient to predict spatial and interannual variation in abundance of Ciona intestinalis in Nova Scotia, Canada
Murphy, K. J., Sephton, D., Klein, K., Bishop, C. D. and Wyeth, R. C. (2019). Abiotic conditions are not sufficient to predict spatial and interannual variation in abundance of Ciona intestinalis in Nova Scotia, Canada. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 628, 105-123. doi: 10.3354/meps13076
2019
Journal Article
Significant population methylation divergence and local environmental influence in an invasive ascidian Ciona intestinalis at fine geographical scales
Ni, Ping, Murphy, Kieran J., Wyeth, Russell C., Bishop, Cory D., Li, Shiguo and Zhan, Aibin (2019). Significant population methylation divergence and local environmental influence in an invasive ascidian Ciona intestinalis at fine geographical scales. Marine Biology, 166 (11) 143, 1-12. doi: 10.1007/s00227-019-3592-3
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Kieran Murphy is:
- Available for supervision
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Media
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