The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-07-14
2
NEW USE FOR ANTS.
observations Of . Naturalist Whom
the Industrious Insects Help In
Preparing Specimens.

the IndustrtOus Insects Help In
Preparing Specimens.
Prof. Lafayette Bernard has returned
from Florida with some artistically
mounted snake skeletons and lots OF
stories about ants. His attention was
first attracted towards ants by the dis
covery that they could be useful to him
in his capacity as collector of speci-
mems, He had lamented the want of
some method of preparing the skele-
tons of small animals for his private
museum without wasting time that
might be devoted to field work. One
day while roaming in the pine woods
of Florida he killed a fox squirrel, and
as his specimen box was full he left the
animal on the ground, intending to re-
turn for it later in the day. When he
got back the flesh Of the squirrel was
gone, but well-cleaned skeleton re-
manned a million ants scurried away
as he approached, and he found that the
little creatures had done his work for
him. This abor-saving hint was not
lost on him, and to the ideas he put into
execution are due the wonderful speci-
mems of skeleton mounting for which
he is noted.
AS one enters the professors little
museum one sees the skeleton of a rat
tlesnake coiled in the position assumed
Just before spr:nging, the fangs pro-
truding, the rattles slightly raised from
the ground, as if sounding the alarm.
This specimen is said to be the first ever
mounted in the natural coil, the bony
structure still held together by the real
cartilage. Again, one sees the skeleton
of black snake coiled about the trunk
of a; small sapling, or that of squirrel
croliching on the limb of tree, as if
trying to shield itself from the eye of
the sportsman, or that of rabbit sit
ting on it's launches. Had it not been
for Mr.. Bernard's little friends the ants
these groupings would have been i'm
possible. The method is simple enough,
when one knows how to apply it. The
professors plan is to kill his specimen,
bind it with wire in the position in
which he wishes the skeleton to remain,
and then places it near group of ant
hills. The voracious insects do the rest.
The operation requires careful watch
ing, else the chronological dissectors
might devour the cartilage that holds
the bones together as we'll as the flesh.
At the proper moment the professor re-
moves the specimen from the region of
the ant hills, applies preservative and
hardening chemical to the cartilage,
and when the bones have set removes
the binding wires.
The innumerable ant hills that infest
the neighborhood of De Land, Fla,
were the scene of many experiments.
1t is well known that certain species of
ants keep slaves that labor for the good
of the commonwealth; that they even
have their mich cows, a species Of the
aphls or tree louise. Prof. Bernard
wanted to learn the relations the slaves
bear to their masters, the method of en-
Shaving, whether slavery among ants
demoralizes the will and degrades the
spirit as lt~does among men, and he set
himself at work to find out all these
things. One day he stood over COM
munity composed of black ants, which
were working industriously away pol
ishing off the bones of quail which
some sportsman had shot and failed to
lind in the long wire grass. Suddenly
he observed a dozen red ants, smaller
than the black ones. They seemed to
be some kind of advance guard, for
after accommodating the black ant hill
they scurried away to their own com
munity, about 100 yards distant. The
professor followed and was rewarded
by seeing wonderful sight. The ad-
vance guard stopped every few min
utes, apparently consulting squads of
their fellows who were out fora ging for
food. The squads stopped in their
tracks while the advance guard went on
, home and entered their hill. The sandy
cone became alive. From all points red
ants poured out and hurried to the
black ant hill, the squads that had
stopped when encountered by the adj
vance guard joining the ranks of the
invaders. AS the army pushed forward
the right and left wings advanced
ahead of the main column, the whole
body forming the concave side of a
crescent. The horns of the crescent
gradually closed, moved toward each
other, until the enemy's camp was
reached when the crescent became
circle AID the camp was surrounded.
Then followed a battle. Hundreds of
dead ants strewed the ground, red and
black engaging in deadly combat. The
red were superior in numbers and final
ly vanquished the black, looted their
stores and compelled their prisoners to
bear the stolen goods to the city of their
conquerors. Twelve fat and sleek am
phides were part of the booty that re-
warded the proves of the victors.
On another occasion Prof. Bernard
dropped dozen red ants among a col
ony of block ones and the intruders
were promptly killed. He placed few
black ones in colony of red ants and
the new arrivals were promptly sur
rounded, marched out of the camp.
compelled to load themselves with food
and then were brought back ens]aved.
The black ants seem to have no propen-
sity for making slaves of their enemies,
but prefer to kill them. while the red
ants never waste an enemy by Destroy
ing him. Although Shareholders, they
are never idle, Prof. Bernard saws.
They keep slaves to increase their own
store of food, but they themselves work
as hard as the s]aves.-N. Y Sun.
slicinE Animal Tissues.
BY means of the microtome slices of
vegetable and animal tissues down to
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