Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-11-12
TELEPATHY IN INSECTS.
Some Remarkable Instances of High
ly Developed senses.

Can it be that bugs are endowed with a
wonderful sixth sense? Prof. Z. V. Riley
tninns ne has discovered satisfactory evi-
ueuce OF teiepdthy among inseeIs-tnat is to
say, u sixth sense, by which they are able
10 communicate lucas from one to another
at great distances The power, as Illus
trated IN the case about to be mentioned.
eviuenuiy depenqs not upon slght or smell
or hearing. Inc ,faet that man is able to
tran smit sound by telegraph almost instan-
Ianeousiy arc una the globe may suggest
something OF tnrs subtle power, even though
it furnishes no explanation thereof.
once upon time Prof. Riley had two
ailaatnus trees in ms front yard. They sug-
ges,eu to hun tne idea of obtaining from
Japan some e5gs of the aiiantnus slIkworm
lie got few and hatcned them, rearing
the iarvae and watching anXiously for the
appearance OF the nrst moths from the CO.
coons. lie put one Of the moths in a little
wlcAer cage and hung IL up out OF doors on
che or the aIiantnuS trees. Inns was fe-
Hale nOIn. On the same evening he took
male moth TO cemetery mIie and a
hair away and let hlm loose, having lreVi-
ously tied SILK thread around the base of
ms abdomen 10 secure subsequent identiti-
cation.
PROT Riley's purpose in this performance
was 10 nnu out II the young male ana the
female moth would come together Tor the
purpose OF mating, they pems in all proDa-
uIuly the only insects OF their Species WIN
III distance OF hundreds OF mlies, except
ing oniy the others possessed by Prof.
RIley himself This power OF locating each
other had previously been remarked IN these
Insects In THIS case sure enough the male
was found with the captive female the next
morning. The latter had been able to at
tract the former from a distance of a mile
and a half.
Concerning the ordinary senses of insects
comparatively little is known. Most of
them certainly see WE'LL the eyes of many
species being far more elaborate than those
Of human beings. The eyes of common
house flies and dragon flies are believed to
be better htted tn an the human eye for OBJ
serving objects in motion, though those
eatureS are short-siShted. 1t may rea-
scnably be supposed that insects possess
taste judging from the discrimination which
they exercise in the choice of their food.
That they have smell is a matter of COM
mon observation, and has been experiment.
ally proved by Sir John Lubbock and others.
Most insects seem to be deaf to the
sounds which are heard by human beings.
At the same time there is no question that
they produce sounds and hear sounds that
are entirely beyond our own range of audi
tory perception. Sir John Lubbock has said
that we can no more form an idea of these
sounds than we should have been able to
conceive a notion of red green If the
human race had been blind. The air is
doubtless often vocal with the sounds made
by insects of so high pitch as to be en-
tirely out of range of mans power to hear.
Certain senses in insects appear to be
beyond comprehension. The neuters among
the ants known "termites" are blind,
and can have no sense of light in their bur-
roWinSS; yet they will reduce a beam of
wood or an elaborate piece of furniture to
a mere shell without once gnawng through
to the surface. An analogy is found among
mammals A bat in a lighted room. though
blinded as to sight, will fly in all directions
with great swiftness and with infallible GER
tainty of avoiding conclusion or contact
with any object. 1t seems to be able to feel
at distance.