William Dwight Billings (1910-1997)

• Published in: ARCTIC
• Main Author: Peterson, Kim M.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: The Arctic Institute of North America 1997
• Subjects: Biographies; Scientists; Billings; William Dwight; 1910-1997; Plant physiology; Tundra ecology; Alpine tundra ecology; Alaska; United States; Arctic; Tundra
• Online Access: https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64164

Dwight Billings, James B. Duke Professor of Botany at Duke University, eminent ecologist, writer, prolific mentor, original thinker, and master of his discipline, contributed much to our ecological understanding of the Arctic and beyond. His list of honors and accomplishments fills several pages. Dwight passed away at his home in Durham, North Carolina on 4 January 1997, at the age of 86. . Billings supervised a total of 52 doctoral students in his years at Duke; as a result, his academic progeny shaped much of the modern field of ecology. The clear and straightforward style of his succinct book Plants and the Ecosystem was responsible for awakening the interest of many to the field of ecology. Billings is considered the father of modern physiological ecology. . Billings' pioneering work on the physiology of alpine plants, along with that of his students, earned him the recognition of being America's foremost authority on alpine tundra. This led naturally to the tundra of the Arctic, and although his interest in everything from deserts to deciduous forests remained keen, most of his later life was devoted to the study of Arctic and high-latitude ecosystems. The body of work of Dwight Billings (and his academic offspring) pertaining to the Arctic is large and well respected. Many of today's Arctic ecologists trace their academic heritage to Dwight Billings, and essentially all others acknowledge some form of Billings' influence.