Morning journal and courier., 1885-11-25
Do Ants know one Anotherf

tJohn Lubbock in the Contemporary Review.l
 When we consider the immense number of ants in 8 nest, amounting in some cases to over 800, 900, it is most remarkable fact that they all know one another. If 8 stranger, even belonging to the same species, is placed ai1long them, shs Is at once attacked and driven out of the nest. Nay more, I have found that they remember their friends even after more than years separation. This Is not by any sign or password, because even if rendered intoxicated, so as to be utterly insensible, they are still recognized. As re- gards the mode of recognition MT. McCook considers that it is by scef1t, end states that if ants are more or less soaked in watsr they arc no longer recognized by their friends, but are attacked. He mentions a case in which sn ant fell accidentally into some water. 'sShe remained in the liquid several moments andkcrept out of it. Immediately she was seized in a hostile manner, first by one, then by another, then by third; the two antennse and one leg were thus held. A fourth assaulted the middle thorax and peti- ole. The poor Httls bather was thus dragged helplessly to and fro for long tims and was evidently ordained to death. Presently l took up the struggling heap. Two of the assailants kept their hold; one finally drop ped, the ether could not tear loose, and so put the pair back upon the tree, leaving the doomed immersionist to her hard fate" His attention having been called to this he noticed several other cases, always with the same result. have not myself been able to repeat the observation with the same species, but with two at least of our native ants the results were exactly reversed. In one case five specimens of Lasius niger fell into the water and remained immersed for nearly kzz l. h. T ,% them in bottle to recover themselves. The following morning I allowed them to return. They were received as friends, and though we watched them from 7,30 till 1:30 every hour there was not the slightest sign of hos tility. The nest was, moreover, placed in 8 closed box so that if any ant were killed we could inevitably find the body, and no ant died. In this case, therefore, it is clear that the immersion did not prevent them from being recognized. Again, three specimens three hodfs TooR fRs but jt att fter ksss kstse1 ing them by themselves for the night to re- cover put them back in the nest. They were unquestionably received friends, without the slightest sign of hostility or doubt. I must, however, repeat these experiments, re- turning the ants at once into the nest. Not the least interesting fact which has resulted from my observation has been the unexpect- ed longevity of these interesting insects The general opinion used to be that they lived for single season, like wasps. Aristotle long ago stated that queen bees live for six and some even for seven years. Bevan, however, observes that "the notions of both ancients and moderns upon this subject have been purely conjectural Indeed, it appears to be somewhat doubtful whether the length of life which the former seem to have attrib- uted to individual bees was not meant to ap- ply to the existence of each bee community" ;" The nests, however, which have devised have enabled me to throw considerable light on this question. The queen ants are so easily distinguished from the workers that they can st once be identified, while, if g nest be taken in which there is no queen, we can satisfy ourselves as to the workers, be- cause, though it is true that workers do sometimes lay eggs, those eggs invariably produce male ants. Hence, in such cases, the duration of the nest gives us the age of the workers; at least they cannot be younger, though, of course, they may be older. In this way I have kept workers of Lasius niger and Formica fusca for more than seven years. But what is more remarkable still have now two queens of the latter species which I have kept ever since 1874, and which, as they were then full grown, must now be nearly twelve years old. They laid fertile eggs again this year, fact of interest which physiologists will recognize. AL though a little stiff in the joints, and less active than they once were, they are still strong and well. and hope may still keep them in health for some time to come. I need not say that shall do my best; but hope that the interest feel in them myself may not have tempted me to trespass too long on the kindness and indulgence of my readers.