The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-01-11
CURIOUS FACTS OF ANTS.
New Discoveries in Regard to tn
BUSY Insects,

Why do ants night each other so saw
agely? Why do they like red and dislike
! blue?
| How long can ants remember?
Does the father or mother have more
| influence in the nest?
These four questions, which no scientist
has been able to answer, have recently
been made clear for the first time by Miss
Adele NJ Fielde of New York City, whose
previous discoveries in connections with
| ant life were published.
Miss Fielde achieved an international
reputation among scientists several years
ago as the inventor of what is called the
"Fielde nest" for ants. These nests are
made of glass. glued together. with wall
of coarse toweling. They are small and
easily sifted from place to place, about
SO of them being kept by Miss Fielde for
her experiments.
1t is Miss Fields custom to spend every
summer at the Marine Biological Labora-
tory, at Woods Holl, near Cape Cod,
Mass. There she has every opportunity
which science can give to study her tiny
pets and their interesting ways.
The results of her observations are
given every fall to the Academy of Ma
tural Sciences of which Miss Fielde il
member. The accounts of her discover
! les, which she made last summer, have
been obtained from the Academy" and
are given to the public.
Mystery number one, which Miss Fielde
succeeded in making clear, is the question
which has before this time puzzled all
students OF ant life. namely. why do ants
fight one another, even members of their
OWN species?
Miss Fielde's answer to this question is
that the ants of every nest have a pecu-
liar odor. by which they recognize each
other and that this odor changes as they
grow older.
Thus two ants from different colonies,
or two ants from the same colony. and
that are six months apart in the matter
Of ages. will treat each other as strangers
and deadly enemies.
Miss Fielde took two groups OF ants OF
the same age from an ant colony, kept
item apart in her nest OF glass and towel
ling for two years. and then mixed them
together. with the result that the treated
one another in the most friendly manner
possible.
This experiment was tried in a number
OF ways and always proved that ants of
the same family and the same age will be
friendly. no matter whether they have
been separated for years or whether they
have ever seen ore another before.
Then Miss Fielde put forty ants all a
month old. in one OF her nests. and intro
ducsd one at time. other ants Of differ
ent ages An ant known 10 be year old
was put in. and at once was savagsly at
tackled ny FIVE OF the month-old inhsbi-
tants OF the nest.
This was tried again and again with the
same results. 1t was found that the little
creatures would not allow any more than
four weeks older than themselves TO In
trude into the nest. : few DAYS difference
in age was not noticei. but months diff
! ference made total strangers ard enemies
Of ants that were children Of the same
queen mother.
All ants become darker in color as they
grow older. THIS fact has always been
| known. but Miss Fielde ssserts tha. their
odor also changes. and that ants which
are practically blind. recognize one another
by their sense ~ smell
II has long been noticed that ants from
the same colony. hu, from nests fifty feet
apart win often meet On the most friend