Jane Brotherton Walker (31 January 1925 – 3 April 2009) was a leading 20th century expert in the field of

tick Ticks (order Ixodida) are parasitic arachnids that are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, species, and "fullness". Ticks are external parasites, living by ...

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

, particularly in Africa.Ivan G. Horak. 2009. Obituary, Jane B. Walker. ''International Conference on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases Newsletter on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases of Livestock in the Tropics'', No. 39: 2-5.Death of Jane B. Walker. ''International Journal of Acarology'' 35(4): 361. Born on 31 January 1925 in

Nairobi, Kenya Nairobi ( ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows throug ...

, Walker grew up on a farm and was

home-school Homeschooling or home schooling, also known as home education or elective home education (EHE), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted by a parent, tutor, or an onlin ...

ed by her mother during her primary school years. She completed her

secondary education Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final pha ...

in England where she graduated from the

Retford High School for Girls Retford (), also known as East Retford, is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England, and one of the oldest English market towns having been granted its first charter in 1105. It lies on the River Idle and the Chesterfie ...

in 1944. During her time in England, she contracted

poliomyelitis Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sym ...

, the

sequelae A sequela (, ; usually used in the plural, sequelae ) is a pathological condition resulting from a disease, injury, therapy, or other trauma. Derived from the Latin word, meaning “sequel”, it is used in the medical field to mean a complication ...

of which would progressively affect her ability to walk, particularly during her senior years. She earned her

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

(with Honours) degree in 1948 and her

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree in 1959, both at

Liverpool University , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

. In 1983, she was awarded a

Doctor of Science Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...

(Hon.) degree by the

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), is a multi-campus South African Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg. It is more commonly known as Wits University or Wits ( o ...

Johannesburg, South Africa Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

. Walker was first employed in 1949 in the Research Branch of His Majesty's Overseas Civil Service as a Research Officer in the East African Veterinary Research Organization in Muguga,

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

, where she rose to Principal Scientific Officer before taking up a post as Senior Professional Officer at the Veterinary Research Institute, Onderstepoort, in 1966 upon the retirement of Gertrud Theiler. She spent the remainder of her working life at the institute, rising through the ranks to Chief Veterinary Researcher, and serving as Specialist Scientist until failing health forced her retirement in 1990. After her formal retirement, she continued to work when able at Onderstepoort in an emeritus capacity until 1998. She was a leading expert on the tick genus ''

Rhipicephalus ''Rhipicephalus'' is a genus of ticks in the family Ixodidae, the hard ticks, consisting of about 74 or 75 species. Most are native to tropical Africa.Olwoch, J. M., et al. (2007)Climate change and the genus ''Rhipicephalus'' (Acari: Ixodidae) in ...

'' and the African ''

Amblyomma ''Amblyomma'' is a genus of hard ticks. Some are disease vectors, for example the Rocky Mountain spotted fever in Brazil or ehrlichiosis in the United States. This genus is the third largest in the family Ixodidae, with its species primarily o ...

''s and served as a member of the Editorial Committee of the Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research from 1969 to 2000. During her active career, Walker authored or co-authored 53 scientific publications and five books, and described 18 new tick species. Walker died at her home in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

on the morning of Friday 3 April 2009, leaving a vast legacy in her published works, and in the training and wisdom she imparted to others, including such eminent researchers as Gertrud Theiler and

Harry Hoogstraal Harry Hoogstraal (born in Chicago, Illinois, February 24, 1917, died in Cairo, Egypt, on his 69th birthday, February 24, 1986) was an American entomologist and parasitologist. He was described as "the greatest authority on ticks and tickborne dis ...

Honors

In addition to the honorary

the

awarded her in 1983, Walker was recognized by her peers with three of the most prestigious awards in the field of

biological science Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...

s in South Africa, the 1988 Elsdon Dew Medal of the Parasitological Society of Southern Africa for outstanding service rendered to Parasitology in Africa, the Agricultural Science and Technology Woman of the Year Award for 1998, and the Theiler Memorial Trust Award in 1998 for exceptional service rendered to Veterinary Science in Africa. The argasid tick '' Argas walkerae'' Kaiser & Hoogstraal, 1969, "Walker's South African fowl argasid"Makram N. Kaiser & Harry Hoogstraal. 1969. The subgenus ''Persicargas'' (Ixodoidea, Argasidae, ''Argas''). 7. ''A''. (''P.'') ''walkerae'', new species, a parasite of domestic fowl in southern Africa. ''Annals of the Entomological Society of America'' 62: 885-890. and the

ixodid tick The Ixodidae are the family of hard ticks or scale ticks, one of the three families of ticks, consisting of over 700 species. They are known as 'hard ticks' because they have a scutum or hard shield, which the other major family of ticks, the 'sof ...

'' Haemaphysalis walkerae'' Apanaskevich & Tomlinson, 2019Dmitry Apanaskevich and Jackson A. Tomlinson. 2019. Description of four new species of ''Haemaphysalis'' Koch, 1844 (Acari: Ixodidae) from the ''H''. (''Rhipistoma'') ''spinulosa'' subgroup, parasites of carnivores and rodents in Africa. ''

Systematic Parasitology ''Systematic Parasitology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of the taxonomy and systematics of parasites. It was established in 1979 and is published by Springer Science+Business Media. The editor-in-chief is Anet ...

'', July, First Online: 22 August 2019. DOI: 10.1007/s11230-019-09875-7, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11230-019-09875-7. were named to honor her contributions to the body of knowledge about

ticks Ticks (order Ixodida) are parasitic arachnids that are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, species, and "fullness". Ticks are external parasites, living by ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Jane Brotherton 1925 births 2009 deaths South African entomologists Kenyan parasitologists Alumni of the University of Liverpool University of the Witwatersrand alumni Women entomologists People from Nairobi 20th-century Kenyan women scientists 20th-century Kenyan scientists Women veterinary scientists Women parasitologists 20th-century South African zoologists Kenyan expatriates in the United Kingdom Kenyan emigrants to South Africa