MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 873 



No. XXXIX.— NOTES ON THE FLYING WHITE ANT AND 

 SCORPIONS THAT FEED ON THEM. 



Actual personal observation, 9-0 a.m., 11th June 1919, at Jamshed- 

 pur (late Sakchi), in the province of Bihar and Orissa, on the w^orks of the 

 Burma Mines, Ltd. 



This morning at about 9-0 a. m., after a good deal of rain during the 

 night, millions of the winged variety of the white ant (termites) started 

 coming out of their nests in and above the ground — and it was most interest- 

 ing watching them issue forth, in numberless legions usually four abreast 

 at a time — -from horizontal openings or slits in the dome of their spire-like 

 dwelling. They practically pushed themselves out, in blind instinct like 

 compliance with a law of nature — and with them came out also numberless 

 ordinary (wingless) ants — seemingly younger ones — only to crawl about and 

 return to their chambers underground. 



None of the winged insects came out of the usual bore holes one sees 

 all around a good sized nest, but from newly made slits about three inches 

 long by one-half inch wide. 



From the bore holes, however, came out a regular platoon of scorpions — 

 large and small — who at once shikared the flying ants, and most dexterously 

 caught them in their front claws from whence they transferred them to 

 their mouths. The largest scorpion was eight inches long, black as ink, 

 and the smallest, one inch long, also black. The colour of the scorpions 

 varied from a dirty brown to ink black, and some had a tinge of red. The 

 number that came out that I could see were twenty-four, others may have 

 been hidden in the scrub brush that grew over the nest — and all were 

 partaking of a sumptuous succulent feast. The scorpions were most 

 alert, and quite alive to the fact they should make hay while the sun shone, 

 literally — and packed up as tightly as possible between their claws and their 

 mouths, as many winged insects as they could conveniently hold. One — 

 the biggest — ^secured forty-six of them, he was a monster. He very adroitly 

 placed himself over an opening, from which files of four were issuing in 

 a constant stream. He usually caught them fair and square and pressed 

 them home to his mouth very easily — but sometimes he got hold of one of 

 their wings, with his claws, and with a tender embrace conveyed the 

 helpless creatures to bis mouth — which in a very short time became a 

 temporary larder, pulsating with life and trembling wings. 



A crowd of Indian workers of the Company soon collected round the 

 yellow mud edifice, where this struggle between life and death was going 

 on, and amongst them were some Santal and Kol women who wished to 

 share the spoil with the scorpions. They brought brass bowls, half filled 

 with water, into which they quickly and very nimbly dropped such of 

 the flying ants as they could catch, keeping an eye on the scorpions at the 

 same time. All the ants they collected are subsequently deprived of their 

 wings and then eaten, fried generally in oil. I have heard of the wild 

 tribes in India sometimes eating locusts and even snakes, when they are 

 hungry, but have not before noticed that the flying white ant was collected 

 for a meal. 



The cessation of the exodus of the ants was also a signal for the 

 scorpions to disappear too, and within a few minutes they scurried back 

 into the bore holes — deep down in the earth nest. I dug ofl' several feet 

 of the top of the nest, and came across several sponge like structures, 

 pulsating and swarming with life, in cup-shaped casings containing embryo 

 ants and eggs, but no scorpions. These had gone deep down into the 

 earth — there in unmolested silence and darkness to enjoy the rich feast 

 they had secured and thus gorged to await another favourable opportunity 

 during the rains, for repeating the operation. 



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