PORTABLE ANT-NESTS. 2 19 



nests, its weight is less than sixteen pounds. Ants have made 

 long journeys in my portable nests, with no grave disturbance of 

 their domestic arrangements. 1 



When preparing the nests for a journey, tapes are tied around 

 them, so as to hold the roof-panes securely in position, and bits 

 of wadding are so inserted as to prevent their displacement in 

 the case. Four of the A nests, sixteen of the D nests, or a selec- 

 tion from among the A, B, C and D nests may be carried in the 

 case. 



Before constructing my ant-nests, I made and used those of 

 the Lubbock and of the Janet patterns, both much older than 

 my own. The Lubbock nest, holding the ants on an island by 

 a moat filled with water, is not portable ; and whenever the pane 

 of glass, covering the layer of earth over the island, needs to be 

 cleaned, there must be a disturbance of the domestic interests of 

 the ants. But the base of the Lubbock nest is a valuable adjunct 

 when the ants are to be housed in my nests. It consists of a 

 square or oblong block of wood, about two inches or five centi- 

 meters thick, with a channel grooved to half the thickness of the 

 wood at a half inch from its edge all around. When the channel, 

 which is an inch or more in width, is filled with water, the island 

 thus formed serves well for the temporary confinement of ants. 

 The ants are brought, as Janet suggested, from their wild nests 

 in little bags permeable by air, or in jars whose mouths are cov- 

 ered by gauze. The contents of the bag or jar are deposited 

 thinly upon the island ; a piece of glass covered by blotting paper 

 and raised slightly above the general surface is laid over some 

 portion of the area ; and the ants, within a few hours, gather 

 the young underneath the darkened glass. Their progress in 

 their work is made visible by an instant's lifting of the blotting 

 paper. Selections from the total capture may be made for 

 removal to the glass nests. My nests of earlier construction, 

 like the Janet nests, had an aperture in the wall through which 

 the ants could themselves transport their young from the earth 

 into the glass nest. But I have found it expedient to personally 

 make selection from the total capture rather than to allow the 

 ants to bring their whole community into the glass nest. 



1 The photographs with which this paper is illustrated were very kindly made for 

 me by Mr. J. G. Hubbard and Dr. O. S. Strong. 



