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Chemist wearing a CSIRO lab coat in a chemistry laboratory. By CSIRO

Top 10 Facts about Doug Waterhouse

Douglas Frew Waterhouse was born in Sydney on 3 June 1916. He was the second of four sons of (Eben) Gowrie Waterhouse OBE, CMG (born Waverley, a suburb of Sydney, 1881), and Janet Frew Waterhouse (nee Kellie, born Ayr, Scotland, 1885).

Doug recalled his mother with great affection. She had come from Kilmarnock, Scotland, earned an MA degree from the University of Glasgow and had been a teacher of languages.

She motivated her sons to be conscientious and hard-working and to ‘derive some satisfaction from having at least striven hard to achieve some goal. Doug Waterhouse was a renowned entomologist, a fine scientist, and an accomplished administrator.

He worked within the CSIRO Division of Entomology for over 60 years and was its Chief for 21 years until his retirement in 1981. Let’s look at some facts about him;

1. Doug responsible for many developments in insect and weed control

Doug was responsible for many developments in insect and weed control both in Australia and around the globe, especially in developing countries across Asia and the Pacific. He not only guided the Division to international prominence but was also an ardent humanitarian whose work had beneficial effects in many neighboring countries. 

2. His Uncle had an early and lasting influence on his development and career

Doug’s uncle, Dr. GA (Athol) Waterhouse [1877-1950] had an early and lasting influence on his development and career.

Athol maintained a lifelong interest in butterflies; he was awarded a DSc by the University of Sydney for his work on the origins of races of the genus Tisiphone (Nymphalidae).

He had earlier obtained degrees in Science and in Engineering from the University of Sydney and had been on the staff of the Sydney Mint until it closed in 1926. He arranged for Doug to become a Junior Member of the Linnean Society of New South Wales.

In 1928, he was appointed Curator and Administrative Officer of the newly formed CSIR Division of Economic Entomology in Canberra. He was to provide some measure of control over its first, rather erratic, Chief, RJ Tillyard.

3. Dough worked at both Cambridge and Yala University

Cambridge University. Picture By Cmdcam01.

Doug was educated at Sydney Church of England Grammar School, North Sydney (‘Shore’), from 1928-33. He was considered a good but not outstanding student.

Research degrees were not available in Australia at that time.  Doug earned his MSc and DSc degrees ‘on the job, having joined CSIRO after completing his Bachelor’s degree.

In 1949, Doug spent a year at Cambridge University. He worked under Professor VB Wigglesworth examining the origin, structure, and function of the peritrophic membrane.

From 1956-57, he visited the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station and Yale University. He also visited other laboratories in Canada and the USA, where he formed many fruitful and lasting friendships.

4. Doug witnessed many profound changes in science 

During his very full 85 years, Doug witnessed many profound changes in science and society.

Not surprisingly, his attitude to science, and the way it might best serve society, evolved in response to these changing circumstances.

The maturation of Doug’s thinking is well illustrated if his career is divided into four periods. They are 22 formative years as a student; his next 20 or so years as a practicing scientist; his third period of 25 years as a research leader; and, finally, his 20 ‘retirement’ years as an Honorary Fellow.

5. Doug played the role of an Assistant Chief, CSIRO

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Corporate Headquarters in the Canberra suburb of Campbell, Australian Capital Territory. By Bidgee.

In 1953, Nicholson (‘Nick’ to all his staff) asked Doug to take on the role of Assistant Chief.

Others had found this to be a difficult assignment, but Doug coped well with it. Initially, the added responsibility had little impact on his research output.

 Eventually, he found that he could only undertake activities that could be put aside when pressing administrative tasks demanded his attention.

Doug put this requirement and his training in chemistry into effect in the study of insect scents and the structure of the glands producing these materials.

6. Doug developed a strong research group

A group of researchers focused on entomology. By CSIRO.

Waterhouse developed a strong research group in the basic disciplines of insect physiology, biochemistry, and fine structure during the 1950s.

The rationale centered on understanding the mode of action of chemical pesticides but ranged widely into fundamental studies in insect physiology and biochemistry.

A notable achievement in the Division during this period was the successful culturing of insect tissues. This was entirely the work of Tom Grace. It took ten years of sometimes frustrating trials before an effective culture medium was developed and Doug supported Grace during those years.

‘Grace’s Medium’ is still available commercially today, 35 years on, and the development represents an important tool for insect molecular biotechnology. With demands for useful outcomes within a three-year timeframe, such a development would be less likely to occur today.

7. Dough was appointed Chief of the Division of Entomology, CSIRO

CSIRO headquarters, Limestone Avenue, Canberra. By CSIRO.

When Nick retired, the CSIRO Executive, following a worldwide search, had no hesitation in appointing Doug as Chief in 1961.

Nick had steadfastly maintained that he did not wish to increase the size of the Division, but that was not Doug’s way. He could foresee many opportunities for working on new ways to control pest species.

He advocated the integration of these approaches into the practice of integrated pest management (IPM). The ambitious proposal ended with the following statement:
No one should underestimate the threat posed by insects. They inhabited the earth 300 million years or more before man and will probably inhabit it after the last vertebrate has perished. We do well to prepare for a prolonged contest.

8. Doug Stored Grain Research Laboratory (SGRL)

One of the finest examples of Doug’s broad strategic thinking is the establishment of the SGRL in 1969.

This was after five years of deliberation with the Australian Wheat Board and the Federal Government. Since its inception, the SGRL has been an outstanding success and has devised a number of effective ways of marketing insect-free grain that have never been treated with insecticides.

On several occasions, its research (particularly that of Jim Des Marchelier) secured Australia’s pre-eminence as a leading grain-exporting nation.

9. Dough  Sponsored by several agencies

Soon after Doug’s retirement, his life-long commitment to the biological control of pests and weeds was stimulated by the many Pacific people he met in October 1982 in Tonga, while attending a training workshop.

Sponsored by several agencies, this workshop was the first of two in Tonga that had a major impact on the biological control of pests and weeds in the region.

10. Doug contributed to the establishment of the University of Canberra

University of Canberra building. Picture By Omicron01.

Doug played a pivotal role in the establishment of the Canberra College of Advanced Education (CCAE), now the University of Canberra. The concept of the CAE system originated with a report in 1964.

This recognized the need for a range of vocational and professional courses that were equal but different from those offered by the universities.

In 1965, a further report to which Doug contributed significantly, established the need for a CAE in Canberra, and in December 1966 an Interim Council, with Doug as a member, was appointed to design a completely new style of higher education.

Doug was convinced that the CAE should produce graduates who would be immediately useful in their profession and that interdisciplinary studies were a critical element of such education. It was to focus on the professions, catering to both full-time and part-time students. He emphasized the necessity for quality teaching.