The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1901-08-15
ANTS AND THEIR COWS.
so-Called Plant Lice Herded, Cared For
and MIXED by Ants.

| New York Times: A lover and stu
| dent of nature can always learn some
| thing by early morning visits to the diff
| ferent parks. a few mornings ago a re-
porter for the Times visited Prospect park
while the dew was still upon the leaves.
| The gardeners were just beginning work.
| Two old fellows We're grumbling over a
weeping ash whose leaves had been
| ruined. They We're sprinkling 1t with
some poisonous connection to kill insects,
and one of them said:
Mike there's no use in working over
this. The more we sprinkle the more the
lice seem to eat
a man who was seated on bench near
walked up TO the little tree, looked at it,
and said:
with that tree until you get rid Of the
ants in the neighborhood."
What have the ants to do with it?'
one asked.
These plant lice, as you call them, are
aphideS and are the mich COWS OF the
ants was the reply.
The two men knew about plant lice, but
had never heard Of ants having mich
cows, SO they became at once interested
in what the stranger had to say.
The poison you nave SDrinkled on the
tree will keep the lice off for but short
time. The ants will carry them up the
tree again."
After a careful search along the ground
which the sun had nearly dried. he called
out: Come here!"
The Times man Joined tho three On
the, ground was a stream Of ants, and
each one had in it's mouth an aphis. The
line was headed for a small bush. Up
the stem the ants went, and on the leaves
deposited their sleek, green kline
Now, II you will WATCH said the
stranger, you will see that half dozen
or more ants will remain as herders. They
nd vii md
then milk them'
This happened as he said One of the
gardeners had now become very much
tons, the man told him that:
Many species Of ants keep aphides as
mllch COWS, and some species employ 9TH
er insects which yield sweet secretions.
can insects and cocci are kept by some,
While one naturalist discovered a species
Lhat Kept caterp.llars of the genus lycocna
for the sake of its sweet secretion.
The ants guard their COWS and care
for them as man does. When the pas
turage gives out they move them. This
accounts for the sudden disappearance of
the lice from an infected plant, which you
nave noticed. The ants have regular sta
hles for them in their nests. During the
winter they are fed on small bits Of leaves
that have been stored by the ants. Be
fore l knew of the aDhides l used often
TO wonder II the ants carrying pieces of
leaves We're taking them for bedding or
for food.
MOI only 90 the ants care for the
aphides, but they collect their eggs and
guard and tend them as they do their
own Now, you may see how the ants
milk their cows"
By this time 1t had developed that the
lmpromptu lecturer was a professor in a
local college. He drew from his pocket
a strong magnifying glass and permitted
each a,cno to ), watch the ants, AS hungry ant
entennae against the abdomen of the in
sect. In second or two the aphis would
be seen to give a little heave and excrete
impid drop of juice which the mixer
eagerly devoureu. Then he would rush
off to another Of his kline and repeat the
operation until hunger was appeased.
Then the instructor explained that If the
ants We're removed and the aphides left
alone , they We're not excrete until their
lead became absolutely painful. They
would show their discomfort as an I'M
MIXED COW does hers, by uneasy move
ments and a restless shifting about
Well, asked a gardener, 'if the ants
keep bringing the lice to the trees, how
are we to get rid of them?''
Obviously. the only way is to kill the
ants, was the reply.
One of the gardeners scratched his head
with grin and remarked: II guess that's
right" and Immediately began war on
the ants.
To the Times man the instructor said:
''The people of New York do not under
stand the real value Of their parks But
how can one blame them when even
tons Of the plant louise? Each park is an
immense volume of nature, which it would
take years for the resident in it's neigh
borhood to read. Let him once begin to
study that volume and he will learn some
thing new and interesting every day.