The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1901-03-08
SOME VICIOUS ANTS.
SPECIES THAT HAVE NEARLY EVERY
BAD TRAIT OF HUMANITY.

They Are Lazy. Greedy. Tyrannous
and Covetous-some That Reduce
Their Captives to Slavery and Put
Them to Queer Uses.
Science Is, after all. your real icono-
clast. Not content with toppling the
busy little bee of her pinnacle of vir-
tues, 1t goes on to attack the ant, for so
long held pattern and moral of thrift.
Ants, say the wise men. have about ev-
cry bad trait of humanity-they are lazy.
greedy, tyrannous, given to conquests
and coveting the territory of their neigh
bors. Along with the territory they Of
tener than not take the neighbors them
selves, holding them ever after in slav-
cry.
Just how this comes to pass is some
thing of puzzle. There are seven hum
dred odd species of ants duly classified.
Several Of these species. say observ-
ers, must possess hypnotic power, since
they attack. subjugate and reduce to
slavery other species which are much
bigger, stronger and more populous in
the nests.
After they have got their slaves many
other queer things happen. The slaves
in some nests are classiied-so many told
off as soldiers to defend the gates. SO
many for domestic duties, foraging. the
care Of eggs, and so on. The soldier ants
are further subdiyided. The larger num-
Der, by constant exercise. develop fierce
nipping jaws and poison stings. The 9TH
ers In some curious fashion increase the
size of their heads. especially II they
happen to be considerably bigger than
their masters. The big heads enable
them to block a passageway against an
invading foe.
Exceptionally elastic slaves are trans
formed into living honey bottles They
are found with abdomens enormously
distended and full of the honey dew the
working slaves bring In. Honey dew.
be it said, Is a secretion Of the aphides, or
plant lice, which the ant swarms keep in
herds within the nest.
Ants are passionately fond Of honey
indeed. Of all sweet juices. They are,
further, fond Of mushrooms and grow
them within their nests. They also culti-
vate certain species Of orchids and bring
about distinct notifications of the plant
form, singing the young tender stems
50 fercely that they will become almost
globular and distill thin semisaccharine
Juice, which the ants no doubt regard as
rare wine. One particular species Of
orchid, indeed. Is so infested with a
virulent singing ant that the collection
Of 1t is very dangerous. The minute
the plant Is touched all the ants swarm
ing over It rush to the point of attack.
That is, however, less curious than the
fact that the orchid will not flourish
without the ants. but withers away after
feeble, struggling years growth
Some few among slaveholding ants re-
main capable. The most part become
utterly demoralized. They cannot build
themselves Not a few, when the slaves
have chosen and built a new nest, ride to
It upon a slaves back. One species is
noteworthy for having only slaves for
workers, yet never containing within the
nests any slave eggs or young.
As with bees, the queen ant is the
mother Of the swarm. Unlike bees, how
ever, there are often several queens in
the same swarm. The workers are rudi-
mentary females. In slavemaking the
victors kill all the perfect ants and take
home the others.
Perfect males and females have wings,
which they drop as soon as the marriage
fight Is over. Worker ants have nc
wings. Worker ants, or, rather slaves,
and the aphis cows by no means exhaust
the list of ant dependents. They keep
various smaller insects as men keep do
nestle animals. Just why Is not yet
clear The fact remains, though, that In
the crannies Of some nests herds OF a
thousand almost invisible small creatures
have been found.
A year Is the average span OF ant life,
but some species live five years and ex-
ceptional individuals as much as seven.
All species show the liveliest concern for
their eggs, Juggling them up into sunshine
upon fair days and scuttling back with
them the minute the sky Is overcast.
Upon a tickle April day the eggs may
be moved a half dozen times. They are
nearly as regardful Of the aphis eggs. In
deed, throughout they protect their milk
kline, shelter them well and take pains In
rearing their young.
Hospitality Is not unknown among ants.
A stranger guest receives distinguished
consideration. But woe to the stranger
ant that comes unlimited. He Il hustled
and pummeled and finally hurt MORALLY
unless he saves himself by showing su-
perior fighting power or possessing q
clean pair Of heels. After he Is down a
mere squirming trunk, bereft Of legs, un-
able to bite, the slaves lay hold on him
and drag him outside the nest to die.
Possibly 1t Is an ant superstition that bad
luck follows a strangers death in the
house.
Formic acid, the distinctive ant prod
net, is one of the greatest vegetable slim
ulants known. The earth of a nest be-
comes so saturated with 1t that some peo-
pie explain the famous Hindoo mango
trick by supposing that the mango seed
which comes to flower and fruit before
your eyes Is planted in a pot Of ant heap
earth.
However that may be, It is established
beyond cavil that ants Of some spe les
cultivate and presumably fertilize their
favorite food stuffs. Cases In point are
the trimmer ants and the harvesting ants,
both of which abound In the state Of
Texas. The trimmers prune a sort of
weed which is to their taste 80 that 1t
shall grow strong and sturdy. The bar
vesting ants go even beyond that. They
clear disks several yards across round
about their nests Of all manner Of vege-
tation, then plant the disks with ant rice,
which they watch and tend until 1t rip
ems, letting no vagrant or alien twig show