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Dr Janet Harker (1943) BSc, MSc, PhD, FRES

Dr Janet Harker (1943) was a lecturer in Zoology at both the University of Manchester and the University of Cambridge. In 1964 she was the first woman to be awarded the World Zoological Gold Scientific Medal. Janet was a Fellow of the University of Cambridge’s Girton College and was the first Australian appointed to the Girton College Board of Directors.

Janet Harker (1943) enrolled at Â鶹ÊÓƵ School in 1941 at the age of 15. During her time at the School, she represented NSW in both Swimming and Hockey. In her final year at Â鶹ÊÓƵ School, Janet was a Senior Prefect, a member of the Senior A Hockey Team, and was on the Sports and Excelsior Committees.

After School she went to University of New England (then called Armidale College, a college of the University of Sydney) where she completed both a BSc and a MSc in Zoology.

In 1949 she went to the University of Manchester to study for a PhD, working on mayflies which remained her special area of research interest throughout her career.

After her PhD, Janet became an Assistant Lecturer in Zoology at Manchester University for a short while (1951–1952), before applying for a College Lectureship at Girton College, University of Cambridge. She was appointed to this position in 1952 and remained attached to the College for the rest of her life.

Janet carried out her research in the pre-eminent entomology¹ group in the Department of Zoology. She was the first woman in the Department to be appointed to a University demonstratorship (1959–1964) and then the first woman to be appointed a University lectureship, a position she held from 1964 until her retirement in 1993.

Janet was fascinated by insects such as dragonflies, bumblebees and water boatmen. For several years, she also worked on cockroaches, studying their physiology and biological rhythms. In 1964 Janet was the first woman to be awarded the World Zoological Gold Scientific Medal, for her work on the physiology of the sense of time and the basis of periodic activities in lower animals. The award was presented to her by the Duke of Edinburgh.

However, Janet’s real passion was mayflies. Her lifelong interest in these insects was kindled during her MSc in Australia and continued through her PhD studies into her Cambridge academic career and then into her retirement. She carried out a long-term field study of mayflies over 25 years in Ardnamurchan² where she had a holiday home, sampling the same sites three times a year. This research resulted in academic publications as well as a naturalist’s guide to mayflies. Many Australian mayflies have the specific name ‘harkeri’ as a result of her work.

Janet was a Lecturer and Director of Studies in Natural Sciences from 1954 until her retirement, and Acting Director of Studies for Medicine and Veterinary Medicine as and when required. She was also Acting Bursar from 1967 to 1969 and Vice-Mistress from 1969 to 1978; during the latter period she also served for a time as Acting Mistress.

She interviewed, taught, encouraged and inspired many generations of students across a range of disciplines, and she changed many students’ lives through her rigour as a strict but fair Director of Studies and by her enthusiasm for Zoology and lifelong learning.

Away from academic life, Janet was a keen angler and gardener. She loved nothing better than trout fishing in the north-west of Scotland with her friends. She also had a consuming interest in her allotment, not just in growing vegetables but also in carefully recording planting dates, yields and the quality of the produce over 40 years. She died peacefully at the age of 90, still eager to finish the second edition of her book on mayflies.


The post-nominal ‘FRES’ is for Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society.

1. Entomology is the study of insects and their relationship to humans, the environment, and other organisms.

2. Ardnamurchan is a small peninsula in the Scottish Highlands, noted for being very unspoiled and undisturbed. It is the most westerly point of mainland Great Britain.