Her father, George Henry Payne Lee was a civil servant, born in Exeter, Devon.

[3] Lee became the first woman to work as a government fishery scientist[4] when she was employed as an assistant naturalist in 1905.

Lee published a number of important scientific papers in her working life,[9][10] including an article that appeared in Nature in 1920.

[11] However, her most cited work is not one published in a prestigious journal, but is a report for the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

Predicting future stock of fish is necessary for good management, and to do this, accurate estimates of growth rates and 'length at age' are required.

This phenomenon occurs when individuals in a population with slower growth rates suffer less mortality when young.

Rosa Lee's work is still relevant today and her paper is frequently cited,[10] however her actual influence is greater than indicated by the number of citations, because some scientific authors simply refer to 'Rosa Lee's phenomenon' rather than correctly citing her publication.