Jennifer Owen () is a British zoologist.

Career

Jennifer Bak was the daughter of F. A. Bak, a noted amateur

ornithologist Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...

and

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

based textile manufacturer. She went on to study zoology in

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

where, in 1955 as an undergraduate, she met Denis Owen. They married after graduation in 1958 and she went to the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

to work as a teaching fellow and complete a research PhD on the study of wasps. After the doctorate Owen took up teaching positions from 1962 in

Makerere University Makerere University (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922, and the oldest currently active university in East Africa. It became an independent national university in ...

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

and

Fourah Bay College Fourah Bay College is a public university in the neighbourhood of Mount Aureol in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Founded on 18 February 1827, it is the first western-style university built in Sub-Saharan Africa and, furthermore, the first university-le ...

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

as well as

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. On her return to the department of zoology with

University of Leicester The University of Leicester ( ) is a public university, public research university based in Leicester, England. The main campus is south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park, Leicester, Victoria Park. The university's predecessor, Univ ...

in 1971 she noticed the huge number of insects in her garden in the United Kingdom compared to those in Africa and the study began. Owen achieved the recording of ninety-one of the 256 species of hover flies in Britain in fourteen years. In thirty years of study she recorded 2,204 insect species in her own garden while also finding 20 species new to Britain and six which were previously undescribed. She wrote a book on the study, ''Wildlife of a Garden: A Thirty-Year Study''. As well as the insects she counted Owen grew over 400 different plant species to determine the best food for the insects being tracked. The garden and home of Owen is in

. She worked as a zoology museum curator and university lecturer, however she is now a wheelchair user due to the impact of

multiple sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

. Owen won the

Veitch Memorial Medal The Veitch Memorial Medal is an international prize awarded annually by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). Goal The prize is awarded to "persons of any nationality who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement and improvement ...

for outstanding contribution to the advancement and improvement of the science and practice of horticulture in 2010.

Personal life

Owen had a son and a daughter with Denis Owen. They divorced in 1994.

Publications

*Owen, J. 1975. ''Suburban Gardens: England's Most Important Nature Reserve? '' *Owen, J. 1982. ''Feeding Strategy''. University of Chicago Press *Owen, J. 1984. ''Mysteries and Marvels of Insect Life''. EDC Publishing *Owen, J. 1991. ''The Ecology of a Garden: The First Fifteen Years''. Cambridge University Press *Owen, J. 2010. ''Wildlife of a Garden: A Thirty-year Study''. Royal Horticultural Society

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Owen, Jennifer Year of birth uncertain 20th-century British zoologists Alumni of the University of Oxford English ecologists British women ecologists English non-fiction writers University of Michigan alumni English women writers Living people Veitch Memorial Medal recipients 20th-century British women scientists Year of birth missing (living people)