Margaret James Strickland | |
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Born | Margaret S. Collins September 4, 1922 |
Died | April 27, 1996 | (aged 73)
Nationality | American |
Citizenship | USA |
Alma mater | West Virginia State University; University of Chicago |
Known for | termites; civil rights advocacy |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Zoologist, Entomologist |
Institutions | Florida A&M University; Howard University; Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History |
Thesis | Difference in toleration of drying between species of termites (Reticulitermes) (1950) |
Doctoral advisor | Alfred E. Emerson |
Author abbrev. (zoology) | Collins |
Margaret James Strickland Collins (September 4, 1922[1] – April 27, 1996) was an African-American child prodigy, entomologist (zoologist) specializing in the study of termites, and a civil rights advocate. Collins was nicknamed the "Termite Lady" because of her extensive research on termites.[1] Together with David Nickle, Collins identified a new species of termite called Neotermes luykxi. When Collins earned her PhD., she became the first African American female entomologist and the third African American female zoologist.[2]