6O HAROLD HEATH. 



'/, etc.- -The food of termites consists almost wholly of 

 wood gnawed directly from the wall of the burrow or solicited 

 from some other individual. The primary royal pair appear to 

 live almost altogether on food which they scrape off for themselves, 

 When the young are hatched they are fed for some time on ma- 

 terial regurgitated by the parents, but after a molt or two proc- 

 todeal food is added and finally constitutes almost the entire 

 food supply procured from another individual. 



After having fed a colony on oak or redwood (Sequoia] which 

 produces dark-colored dejecta, and then changing the diet to 

 white pine, it js easy to see that the greater part of the excre- 

 ment, voided in the form of white pellets, never again enters the 

 digestive tract of another individual. Apparently this is chiefly 

 owing to its dryness. Some specimens, probably all at different 

 times, appear to have the power of retaining a certain amount 

 of moisture in the excreta. These are eagerly sought out by 

 their companions which palpitate the abdomen of the one solic- 

 ited with their antennas and clasp its tip between their mandibles. 

 If the stimulus be too early applied the one sought after runs 

 away ; otherwise it passes out the pellet which is greedily de- 

 voured. Occasionally one may feed itself in this way. This 

 proctodeal food supply constitutes almost the sole diet of the 

 substitute royalty, whose dejecta, like that of the soldiers, is 

 never again devoured. 



It appears to be a general belief that the soldiers, on account 

 of the huge size of their mandibles, are able only with the greatest 

 difficulty to solicit proctodeal food, and are accordingly in a 

 chronic state of hunger. Sick or disabled individuals are greedily 

 eaten by them, and at various times perfectly healthy forms are 

 dispatched and devoured. Grassi supports this belief by some 

 examples, but at the same time he notes that Calotcnncs flavicoHis 

 also solicits food in the usual way. With all the Californian 

 species the soldiers are almost invariably at peace with their 

 fellows. Moribund and possibly supernumerary forms are 

 dispatched, but this is rarely done by the soldiers, who stand 

 .guard most of the time at some of the more exposed parts of the 

 nest. At other times they move quietly among the workers 

 and nymphs, and, with heads rotated to one side, solicit food with 



