Michael Eugene Nicolas Majerus (13 February 1954 – 27 January 2009) was a geneticist and Professor of Ecology at Clare College, Cambridge, an enthusiast who became a world authority in his field of evolutionary biology. He was widely noted for his work on moths and ladybirds and as an advocate of the science of evolution. He was also an enthusiastic educator and the author of several books on insects, evolution and sexual reproduction.
The son of Fernand and Muriel Majerus, he took an early interest in lepidoptera and ecological genetics following the work of E.B. Ford, whose book Moths (in the New Naturalist series) he bought at the age of ten. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood, and graduated in botany and zoology from Royal Holloway College, London. Later he moved into studying ladybirds, an area which brought him widespread publicity as an expert in 2004 when the Harlequin ladybird came to Britain, causing a disaster for native species. This publicity led to the involvement of members of the public in the effective monitoring of the spread of the Harlequin. His work on the peppered moth provided new support for the understanding of peppered moth evolution.
His research work was largely focussed around insect species, particularly the peppered moth and ladybirds, but explored these from many different perspectives including melanism, male killers, sexual selection, sexually transmitted diseases, animal colouration, invasive species, and biological pest control.
He was the president of the Amateur Entomologists' Society, a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society, and a Life Fellow of the British Naturalists' Association. He received a number of awards, including the Sir Peter Scott Memorial Award in 2006, for his contributions to British Natural History.
He died January 27, 2009 after an unexpected and brief struggle with aggressive mesothelioma.
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