Ch. Y.] FOOD OF THE ANTS. 81 



chambers of the nest of a distinct species that generally 

 conies out only in the night-time, and often enters the 

 house and carries off various farinaceous substances, and 

 does not make mounds above its nests, but long, winding 

 passages, terminating in chambers similar to the common 

 species, and always, like them, three parts filled with 

 flocculent masses of fungus-covered vegetable matter, 

 amongst which are the ant nurses and immature ants. 

 "When a nest is disturbed, and the masses of ant-food 

 spread about, the ants are in great concern to carry every 

 morsel of it under shelter again ; and sometimes, when I 

 had dug into a nest, I found the next day all the earth 

 thrown out filled with little pits that the ants had dug 

 into it to get out the covered up food. When they 

 migrate from one part to another, they also carry with 

 them all the ant -food from their old habitations. That 

 they do not eat the leaves themselves I convinced my- 

 self ; for I found near the tenanted chambers deserted 

 ones filled with the refuse particles of leaves that had 

 been exhausted as manure for the fungus, and were now 

 left, and served as food for larvse of Staphylinidce and 

 other beetles. 



These ants do not confine themselves to leaves, but also 

 carry off any vegetable substance that they find suitable 

 for growing the fungus on. They are very partial to the 

 inside white rind of oranges, and I have also seen them 

 cutting up and carrying off the flowers of certain shrubs, 

 the leaves of which they neglected. They are very 

 particular about the ventilation of their underground 

 chambers, and have numerous holes leading up to the 

 surface from them. These they open out or close up, 

 apparently to keep up a regular degree of temperature 



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