The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1874-05-30
ARMY ANTS.


1t is suggestive circumstance that,
among the many varieties of animal forms,
those which approach man most nearly III
social and mental development are not his
nearest allies, but creatures of an entirely
different order, and those which stand at
the head of their class, the articuates, as
man does at the head of the vertebratcs.
The closeness of formic mimicry Of hui
man civilizations is all the more surprising
when we take into account the vast differ
ence between the physical conditions of the
two types of life. With nothing appar-
emily in common, not even similarity Of
structure, men and ants have fallen into
lines of development so nearly parallel in
many instances as to suggest tie eXistancc
of something far more imperative in the
tendencies of life, and at the same time a
much greater limitation in the possibilities
of development, than are commonly sus-
pected. Especially to those who regard
mind as an unmiXed product of material
conditions, and would measure mental
power by weight of brain, nothing can bc
more perplexiusa than to see the almost
microscopic cerebral ganglia of the ant
evolving products so like those of the i'm
menSely more bulky brain of man that
their practical identity is unquestionable.
But our purpose is not to study the myS-
terry of formic intelligence in general, but
the peculiar manifestations Of ii by certain
species whose modes of life have been
recently investigated.
AS general thing, ants are found in
settled communities, which change Their
habitations rarely, and then for causes not
under their control. \ remarkable cXccp-
tion to this rule is found in the ectoas, on
army ants Of Central America. These.
while existing in thoroughly organized
communities, numbering myriads if not
millions, never make permanent settle
meutS, but are constantly roaming about
the forests in vast nultitudes, scourging
the insect world as the migrating armies of
Attila scouIgcd thc less walllke nations of
Europe.
The travellers attention is usually called
to one Of these predatory swarms by the
twittering of birds which follow their
course to feast on the flying insects which
they scare up. Approaching, he will dis
cover a dense body Of ants, in column
three or four yards wide and of enormous
length, moving rapidly and examining
every nook and corner where their game
may hide. The captured insects are speed
lily torn to pieces and carried to the rear,
or to their temporary camp, by relays Of
workers. On the TANKS and in advance of
the main army, smaller columns of Skin
misherS are thrown out to flush the insects
they are in pursuit of, many of which, in
their terror, bound right into the midst of
the main column, to be torn to pieces in
stantly. The greatest catches occur in
masses of brushwood. Here the cock
reaches, grasshoppers, spiders and other
insects take refuge among the branches.
while the ants are occupying the ground
below. But their security is brief. In
little while explorers are sent up, follow
ing every branch and driving the refugees
to the ends of the twigs, to fly into the air
and be snapped up by the birds, or drop
among the throng Of ants below. In this
dilemma the spiders alone have any means
of escape: they can suspend themselves in
mid-air and remain in safety until their
enemies have retired from the bushes and
passed on to other conquess.
The individuals of this species of ants
.ecit9a prcdatorl are of various sizes, the
largest being about a quarter of an inch
long, the smallest less than an eighth of an
inch. \ much larger variety jCci0n haHs-
otal pursue their prey in a similar manner,
but vary their tactics somewhat as occa-
sion demands. When on general hunt,
they spread their columns over considcra-
Die breadth and sweep everything before
them, crickets, grasshorpers, scorpions,
centipedes, woodlce, cockroaches, and spi-
ders falling almost certain prey. Explor-
ing parties are also sent UP trees to. look
for nests Of bees, wasps. and probably
birds. The moment a prize is found the
fact is reported to the army below, and
column is sent up to take possession. Mr..
Belt, to whom we are indebted for these
observations, and whose Naturalist in
Nicaragua" gives more numerous and val
liable additions to the science of natural
history than any book of travel since Wal
lace published the MALAY Archipelago
describes these ants as pulling out the
Larvae and pupH from the cells of 4 large
wasp's nest, while the owners We're hover
ing about, powerless, from the multitude
of their invaders, to render amy protection
to their young.
When hunting in solid columns, these
ecitons were found to he generally if not
always, in search of the young of another
species of ants lhypocliaeal which make
their nests in fallen timber. When log
is found, the column spreads out over it,
searching all the holes and cracks, the
smallest individuals pursuing the unfortu-
nate hypoclineas to the furthest ramifica-
tions of their nests. The invaded ants
rush ont bearing their young in their jaws,
and are despoiled of them SO quickly that
it is quite impossible to see how it is done
The ecitons do not harm the mature hypo-
clineas, caring only for the Larvae and puI;n
which are hastily borne to the rear of their