Oct. 16, 1916 
Effects of Nicotine as an Insecticide 
9i 
organic substances. This test did not appear sufficiently significant to 
warrant the expenditure of more time. 
The 50 bees lived from 10 hours to 72 hours, with 33 hours as an 
average, whereas 50 bees fed honey containing no nicotine lived 8 days, 
on an average. To facilitate description, the behavior of the bees dying 
of nicotine poisoning may be divided into three stages, and since nico¬ 
tine kills the higher animals by paralysis and since, as will be shown, it 
kills insects similarly, the words “paralyze” and “paresize” may be 
used from the outset. The word “paresis ” means partial motor paralysis, 
while the word “paralysis” includes both motor and sensory paralysis. 
First stage;. —Shortly after being poisoned, bees become more or 
less inactive and are seldom seen eating. They “pay little or no atten¬ 
tion” to hive mates or to strange bees and never attack the latter. They 
soon become stupid, and from then on their behavior is quite abnormal. 
All their senses are perhaps benumbed, for they do not offer to attack 
bees carrying foreign hive odors, and they are not very sensitive to 
mechanical stimuli of any kind. A little later one or both, but usually 
one, of the hind legs becomes partially paralyzed (paresized), and there¬ 
after they are of little use. Or the front legs may be stricken partially 
or totally with motor paralysis at the same time, but occasionally the 
middle legs may be similarly affected before either of the other two 
pairs is stricken. The wings seem to be paresized before the legs are 
affected, because a stupid bee removed from the case is able to walk 
normally and can vibrate its wings, but can not lift itself from the table. 
Whenever the motor paralysis has not extended further than to paralyze 
partially the wings and to paralyze totally only one pair of legs, the bees 
in almost every instance recover when removed from the case to fresh air 
and when given pure honey. They eat the honey readily and soon 
throw off their stupor, and the paresized wings and legs soon recover so 
that after half an hour the bees are again able to fly. 
Second stage. —Soon after one pair of legs is stricken, all three pairs 
and the wings become paresized. During this stage bees act somewhat 
like a man intoxicated with alcohol. They walk in a staggering manner, 
drag the paresized legs, and frequently fall down, but never walk upright 
in the normal manner. Sometimes all three legs on one side may be 
affected totally by motor paralysis, while on the other side one or more 
legs may not be stricken. In such a case as this, the bee lies flat on its 
thorax and abdomen and turns in a circle. Often a bee falls over on its 
side or on its back and can not get up. Sometimes the middle and hind 
legs are totally stricken with motor paralysis, while the front legs are 
apparently not affected. In this case the bee crawls along by dragging 
its abdomen. A little later when all the legs and wings are affected 
totally by motor paralysis, the bees are entirely helpless. If removed 
from the case at this instant, a bee thus paralyzed is still able to extend 
its tongue and to eat honey, but a few moments later the men turn 
