Nellie Maria de Cottrell Payne (December 11, 1900 – July 19, 1990) was 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 ...

and

agricultural chemist Agricultural chemistry is the study of chemistry, especially organic chemistry and biochemistry, as they relate to agriculture—agricultural production (economics), production, the food processing, processing of raw products into foods and beverag ...

. Her research on insect responses to low temperature had practical agricultural and environmental applications.

Early life and education

Emily Maria de Cottrell Payne was born in 1900, in

Cheyenne Wells, Colorado Cheyenne Wells is the Statutory Town that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Cheyenne County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 758 at the 2020 United States Census. History The community was named for the ...

, daughter of James E. Payne Sr. and Mary Emmeline Cottrell Payne. Her father was superintendent of an agricultural station. She had two brothers, Amos and James. She earned a bachelor's (1920) and master's (1921) degrees in agricultural chemistry and entomology from the Kansas State Agricultural College, and a Ph.D. in 1925 from the University of Minnesota. Under the advisement of Royal N. Chapman in the Division of Entomology and Economic Zoology, her dissertation concerned the effects of low temperatures on insects.

Career and research contributions

During her graduate studies, Payne taught briefly at

Lindenwood College Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri. Founded in 1827 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution west of the Missis ...

in Missouri. As a young scholar she spent several years as an editor and staff member at '' Biological Abstracts''. She was named a National Research Council Fellow in 1925, to work in the zoology department at the University of Pennsylvania. From 1933 to 1937 Payne taught entomology at the University of Minnesota, while spending summers as a researcher at

Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is an international center for research and education in biological and environmental science. Founded in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, in 1888, the MBL is a private, nonprofit institution that was independent ...

. Her research at Woods Hole involved low temperature effects on invertebrates and the physiological effects of

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

s on their hosts. Payne left academia in 1937, to be a researcher for

American Cyanamid American Cyanamid Company was a leading American conglomerate which became one of the nation's top 100 manufacturing companies during the 1970s and 1980s, according to the Fortune 500 listings at the time. It started in fertilizer, but added ...

; in 1942 she shared a patent on an insecticide with fellow researcher Walter Ericks. She received a patent on another insecticide in 1949, as sole inventor. In 1957, she accepted a position with

Velsicol Chemical Corporation Velsicol Chemical Corporation is an American chemical company based in Rosemont, Illinois that specializes in reaction intermediate#Chemical processing industry, chemical intermediates for applications such as agrochemicals. It was founded in 19 ...

, and stayed with them until her retirement in 1971. In 1921, Payne was elected to membership in the

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an American international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific respons ...

, and in 1940 she was named a fellow of the

Entomological Society of America The Entomological Society of America (ESA) was founded in 1889 and today has more than 7,000 members, including educators, extension personnel, consultants, students, researchers, and scientists from agricultural departments, health agencies, ...

. She was also an active member of the New York Academy of Sciences, was a National Research Council fellow in zoology at U. Pennsylvania (1925–27), a member of the American Chemical Society, and the American Society of Zoologists. Payne conducted some of the seminal work on insect cold hardiness, including that on aquatic insects, ''Popillia'' ''japonica'', and numerous forest insect pests. It continues to be cited as a foundation for later research.

Personal life

Nellie Payne died at home in Chicago in 1990, age 89."Nellie M. Decottrell Payne"
''Chicago Tribune'' (July 22, 1990).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Payne, Nellie M. 1900 births 1990 deaths American women entomologists University of Minnesota faculty University of Pennsylvania faculty Kansas State University alumni University of Minnesota alumni People from Cheyenne County, Colorado 20th-century American women scientists 20th-century American zoologists