Suzanne Wellington Tubby Batra (born December 15, 1937) is an American

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

best known for her work on the classification of insect societies and for coining the term

eusociality Eusociality (from Greek εὖ ''eu'' "good" and social), the highest level of organization of sociality, is defined by the following characteristics: cooperative brood care (including care of offspring from other individuals), overlapping generat ...

. Batra was born in New York City where her father Roger W. Tubby was a journalist and secretary to

President Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

, later serving in the United Nations as US Ambassador during the

Kennedy Kennedy may refer to: People * John F. Kennedy (1917–1963), 35th president of the United States * John Kennedy (Louisiana politician), (born 1951), US Senator from Louisiana * Kennedy (surname), a family name (including a list of persons with ...

period. At a young age, she was exposed to outdoor life, natural history, fishing and hunting especially after the family moved to the Adirondacks. She graduated from Saranac Lake (New York) High School in 1956 and received a Bachelor of Arts in

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and dis ...

from

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a private liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the earliest coeducational colleges in the United States. It was established as a ...

in 1960. She married her botany professor Lekh R. Batra (1929–1999) and continued her studies in the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

under Charles D. Michener. She received a PhD in 1964 for studies on sociobiology of sweat bees. She studied solitary bees in the family

Colletidae The Colletidae are a family of bees, and are often referred to collectively as plasterer bees or polyester bees, due to the method of smoothing the walls of their nest cells with secretions applied with their mouthparts; these secretions dry into ...

, including on the chemistry of their waterproof nest-cell linings made of

polyesters Polyester is a category of polymers that contain the ester functional group in every repeat unit of their main chain. As a specific material, it most commonly refers to a type called polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Polyesters include natural ...

. Batra had a daughter (1964) and a son (1967). She joined the US Department of Agriculture in Maryland in 1967, retiring in 1999. She continues to study bees at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded o ...

References

American entomologists 1937 births Living people Swarthmore College alumni University of Kansas alumni Beltsville Agricultural Research Center scientists Women entomologists {{US-entomologist-stub