THE HABITS OF CALIFORNIA TERMITES. 55 



and a half feet beneath the surface they contained seven, nine and 

 thirteen eggs and six, three and eight young respectively. The 

 other colony was placed under and in a plank buried about a foot 

 beneath the soil near Stanford University and contained the true 

 royal pair, seven eggs, one soldier and twenty-seven workers and 

 young of different sizes. From these few examples I am strongly 

 of the opinion that the establishment of new colonies by means 

 of true royal pairs is not only a normal process in California but 

 very probably one of comparatively frequent occurrence. 



As previously noted the true royal forms of all three species 

 here considered, abstain from any form of nourishment from the 

 time of their last molt until the process of excavation has begun, 

 and no special supply of food is carried from the paternal roof 

 in order to enable them to exist until the time arrives when they 

 may be cared for by their offspring. On the other hand every- 

 thing at this time is apparently sacrificed to lightness of body, 

 resulting in a wider dispersal with less exhaustion than would 

 result with forms loaded with fully developed reproductive organs 

 or food either in or out of the body. 



A very short time after excavation has commenced the abdo- 

 men of both male and female increases rapidly in size. That of 

 the latter is slightly larger and more globular, but in both the 

 enlargement is due to nutriment taken into the alimentary canal 

 and to the developing reproductive elements. Within a month 

 both have attained to nearly their maximum size which, as the 

 figures show, is far short of that of some of the tropical forms. 

 At no time do they require to be fed, and their size does not 

 prevent their active locomotion from place to place. 



Rate of Increase, etc. As previously mentioned eggs are de- 

 posited in the newly made nests of Teruics lucifugus within five 

 weeks after pairing, but owing to the fact that these and the 

 young are shifted about in galleries often away from the light, the 

 observations I have made concerning the rate of egg-laying and 

 the time required for hatching are very incomplete. This is also 

 the case with Calotcnnes. Tennopsis, on the other hand, is much 

 more hardy and lends itself readily to observation and this, con- 

 nected with their abundance, has placed me in possession of con- 

 siderable data. They mate readily in captivity, and upwards of 



