Professor Michael John Morwood (27 October 1950 – 23 July 2013) was a New Zealand archaeologist best known for discovering Homo floresiensis.
Morwood began his career employed as Regional Archaeologist by the Queensland State Archaeology Branch of the Department of Aboriginal and Islander Affairs (DAIA) between 1974 and 1976.
He initially joined a project by a group of Dutch and Indonesian researchers led by Paul Sondaar (1934-2003), who followed up on discoveries in the 1950s and 60s by Theodor Verhoeven[7] (1907-1990) on ancient human occupation in Wallacea.
Of additional interest to the find are the lithic tools associated with the discovery of Homo floresiensis and the cognitive behaviours connected with their manufacture and use (Brumm et al. 2006).
Excavations at Mata Menge, Flores, hope to provide greater evidence on the early hominin colonisation of the Indonesian area.
The public interest in these hominin finds have sparked numerous documentaries and written works detailing all manner of scientific investigation and discussion on the subject.
More recent multinational research projects have identified the interactions of human activity, the local environment, climates and island faunas in long-term changes in Indonesia.
The research being conducted in the Kimberly region of Australia may provide evidence of the effect of environmental and cultural alteration as a result of climate change and human habitation in the area (Professor Michael "Mike" Morwood 2011).
Morwood's innovations in on-site field data recovery include the adaptation of shoring techniques found on industrial construction sites that are well suited for deep excavations.
As a globally recognised scholar, Morwood is known for his interdisciplinary projects that have embraced various media avenues to promote archaeology to the public.