The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1877-09-26
Sur John Lubbock ON Ants.

In the May number of the Popular Science
Monthly appears the new paper Of the English
naturalist on the habits of the Ants. From it
we quote some strange things:
SLAVES AMONG ANTS.
In another species, however, Polyergus re-
fesceus, this is not the case. They present
striking lesson Of the degrading tendency Of
slavery, for they have become entirely depend
ent on their slaves Even their bodily structure
has undergone change: their mandibles have
lost their teeth, and have become mere nlppers
deadly weapons. indeed, but useless except
ia war. They have lost the greater part OF their
instincts: their art, that Is. the power OF build
ing; their domestic habits, for they take no care
Of their young all this being done by the slaves
their udustry-they take no part in providing
the daily supplies il tue colony changes The
situation OF It's nest, the masters are all carried
BY the slaves to the new one nay, they have
even lost the habit Of feeding. Huber placed
thirty OF them with some larya and pupe, aud
supply Of honey, in box. At drst," he says.
they appeared 10 pay some little attention 10
the larya; they carried them here and there.
but presently replaced them. More than one
half of the Anazons died of hunger in less than
two DAYS. They had not even traced out
dwelling and the few ants still in existence
were laugud and without strength. | comniser
sted their condition, and gave them one of their
black compsnious This individual established
order. formed chamber IN the earth gathering
together The Larvae, exIrcated several ants that
we're ready to QUIT the condition OF pupe, and
preserved the l'fe of the remaining Amazons.'
This observation has been fully confirmed by
other naturalists. However small the prison, how
ever large the quantity of food. these stupid cres-
lures will starve iu the midst of plenty rather
than feed themselves. l have had nest OF this
species under observation for long time but
never ssw one of the masters feeding. have
kept isolated specimens for weeks by giving
them slave for an hour or two day 10 clean
and feed them. and under these circumstances
they remained in perfect health, while but for
the slaves they would have perished in two or
three days. | know no other case iu nature OF q
species having lost the instinct OF feeding.
STUDYING THE HABITS OF ANTS.
have kept in captivity nearly half of our
British species of ants, and at the present mo-
ment have ia my room more than thirty nests
belonging TO about twenty species, some of which
however, are not English. No two species are
identical in habits. and on various accounts their
mode Of life is far from easy to unravel. In the
first place most of their time is passed under
ground !; all the education of the young. for in
stance, is carried on in The dark. AgaG, ants
are essentially gregarious; it is in some cases
difficult 10 keep few alive by themselves 10 cap
tviity, and at any rate their habits under suct
| circumstances are entirely altered. II, on the
other hand, whole community is kept, then tbs
greater number introduces fresh element o.
/ difficulty and complexity. Moreover within tbs
/ same species. the Individuals seem to differ il
7 character. and even the same individual will be
I have very differently under different in circum
/ stances. Although. then. ants have attracte,
I the attention OF many naturalists-Gould, d.
/ Geer, SWammerdam. Latrelle, Leeuwenhoeck
/ Huber-aud have recently been ths object o
/ interesting observations by Frederick Smith
I Belt, Moggridge, Msyr, Emery, Forel. an,
others, they still present one Of the most promis
ing fields for observation and experiment.
THE FooD OF ANTS.
The food of ants consists of insects-grea
numbers OF which they destroy-of honey honey
dew, and fruit indeed scarcely any animal o
sweet subtance comes smiss TO them. Som
species-such. for instance. as the small brow
garden snt-ascend bushes in search of sphide:
The ant then taps the sphis gently with her al
tenua, and the aphls emits drop OF sweet fluid
which the ant drinks. Sometimes the ants eve
build covered ways up 10 and over the aphide
I Whlcn, moreover, they protect from Tue atihck
of other insects. Our English ants do not colleC
provision for the winter-lndeed, their food
not of nature which would admit of this. Som
southern species, however, collect grain, occs
sionally in considerable quantities. Moreover
though our English auts cannot be said exactl
10 lay up stores, some at least do take steps {
provide themselves with food 10 the future. III
small yellow meadow AIT (Lasius aiyus), for il
stance lives principally on the honeY-deS OF Gel
tain aphides which suck the roots Of grass. Th
ants collect the aphides in the nest, not onl
watching over them themselves, but, as | hay
been ably to satisfy myself, even over their egg
an act which one is much tempted to refer I
fore-thought and which in such q case implies
degree of prudence superior to that of som
soyares