The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-07-02
Intelligence In Insects.

r,..u,n., d, ,,
~ 10 wen Known thhV DIT John Luppock
rhhks win HUBER ana fOrel among the nat
uralists VINO nave STUDIED most carefully ana
lruitiuiiy the proofs oil Intelligence exhibited
ny certain species oil insects record OF the
experiments which he has made during the
l"s' Ten years Is now pupnshed III Appletons
inVerhHtlohal Sclchtlhc series under the title
oi nus bees ana NaSpS inc author found
'h"' ahts were more convenient than bees or
Wasps lot experimental purposes. ana they
formed accordingly, the object OF most OF the
OBSERVATIONS whose results are set iorth In this
volume In the present notice we shall coniine
ourselves to some OF the striking facts con-
hrmeu OF discovered by Sir John Lubbock in
regard 10 the powers OF sense. the mental con-
uilloh' aHu lhe social economy oil ants.
A'houEh naturally u more cautious ana less
I"ias ihatNe man thah the SWISS naturalist Sir
oonh LUBBOCK iul'y cohcurs with Nj. forel In
assigning 70 ants hiGh place in the scale OF
organic me- lie uoes not, OF course. deny that
INC ahthropoiu apes approach nearer TO man
III uoully structure thhh 90 any other animals.
pu' ne 'hlhNs 'lHt Wheh We consider the hhoits
Oh ants their sociai organization, their large
communities ana elaborate habitatlons. their
roadways their possession OF domestic ami
-. ,,.,-,..- a. -, -, -
ra,l ,. -, ''I ~. r"' !" i'.' C,"''i "
~ ~, - 80 ~, y, u 't.o'''e ~" ny,
lhueeu the author Is leu IN the course oil TINS
treatise. TO consider the question whether ants
are not also moral ana accountable beings. 1t is
certain lie Tolls US, that they have their de-
slres their passions. even their caprices. Their
nests are no mere collections OF independent
individuals. nor even temporary associations
like the flocks OF migratory birds hut organ
b,r,,,r,, ,o, ,I,o ,,,,,,,,,,,, ,r,ol M, .,,,.,s
,I, ,n,I,,,,,,s ,,.biL d, 81 r,.n,.,,,-, ,hnaa
sti,rto ~ bu,,,r sn.,iati.s rondor tho,,, noo,,
liariv intoroa,ir,, 70 NJ orJ ON, o,,,I, I,,
lam, IN know moro ~ th.ir cb,r,c,or bon, ,ha
world o,r,,rs 10 tbo,, anil 10 ,rh,t ox,.,t
tbav nra conscious and r,osonohl, hoipco
With n vi.v, of ,hro,viry II nnssihl, rrnroIi,bt
unon his suh;,ct and M ,u events ~ yeri-
fyiu,t the reinnrkobIe assertions Of nr.cod
inn. observers SIR Jobn Iuhh,ck mr.
RANGED n s.rics Of exnerimcnts which in rc-
surct of thnr,uuhnr.s hnve not hnan nnuaIi,,d
He Lns kent for some years from thirty to forty
communities of ants in nests confined between
glass plates. He has one community that has
inhabited the same glass case ever since 1874.
Another main difference between his ohserya-
tons and those of other previous naturalists
has consisted in the careful record Of the
actions of individual nnts. He found the most
convenient mode of marking them was with a
small dab of paint on tho back. but the paint
had to be- frequently renewed inAsmuch as the
comrades OF tho insect were assiduouS in their
efforts to erase tho mark. Many of the
conclusions advanced in this volume
were only reached by the inoessant OBJ
servaton Of marked individuals prolonged
for many hours. and sometimes for days.
the author, when fatigucd, being re-
loved by other members of his family. One
result of experiments conducted with such I'M
exampled perseverance, has been to refute a
current opinion regarding the longevity of
ants. We may remind the reader that the life
OF an ant falls into four well-marked periods
those of tho egg. of the larva or grub. of the