Dr David Murray first worked in cotton as an entomologist based in Emerald CQ with the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries during the early 1980s. Relocating to Toowoomba in the mid-80s David undertook research on diapause mechanisms in Helicoverpa armigera which informed the industries approach for the practice of pupae busting which remains to this day an essential component of resistance management for Bollgard crops and conventional insecticide resistance.

In the 1990s much of David’s research focused on IPM and in particular the exploitation of parasitoids – Microplitus and Trichogramma – for Helicoverpa management in cotton and grains. This work evolved to consider the broader management of Helicoverpa across the farming system giving rise to the concept of Area Wide Management where pests are ideally managed across fields, farms and regions collectively. This concept still underpins the IPM of pests such as aphids and silverleaf whitefly today. David retired from QDAF in 2011.