426 MORRIS M. WELLS 



from widely separated colonies mix readily. There are usually 

 several queens in any small nest and they live together amicably. 

 In the winter nests there may be several hundred queens and 

 countless workers and immature stages. Eciton hamatum, a 

 common Brazilian ant (12), lives largely upon other ants. It 

 attacks particularly Dolichoderus lugens, which latter species 

 secretes from the anal gland a large drop of yellow liquid which 

 Mann takes to be protective. Another case of predaceous 

 relationship among ants is suggested by Donisthorpe (6), who 

 describes a new species of Epitritus from Hawaii. He states 

 that this species, which he calls wheeleri, probably accompanies 

 other ant species and preys upon their brood stages. 



Donisthorpe (7) had a colony of Leptothorax nylanderi into 

 which, as food, he introduced some worker pupae of Myrmica 

 scabrinoides. Some of the pupae were eaten but others were 

 not harmed and the adults emerged in due time. Most of the 

 Myrmica workers were killed at once, but for some reason one 

 was allowed to go unharmed. This individual lived in the 

 Leptc thorax colony for three months, when it. died an appar- 

 ently natural death. 



Up to the year 1915, according to Donisthorpe, there was 

 only one instance on record where queen ants have been reared 

 from eggs laid in captivity. For five years Donisthorpe had 

 kept a colony of Myrmecina gramnicola but no queens were 

 produced. On July 1, 1915, however, three winged females 

 appeared from pupae, which must have been reared in the 

 captive nest. By July 10, fifty winged females were present 

 and many others appeared later. Only one male was seen. 

 No mating was observed but by the end of August many of the 

 females were removing their wings. On September 16, the 

 male was seen flying about in a very excited way in the nest; 

 the next day it was dead. 



The winged females helped to carry about the larvae, to kill 

 and cut up flies, and in general behaved as workers. The last 

 one removed her wings December 15 and all the deflated females 

 continued to behave as workers. As to whether or not they will 

 lay eggs remains to be seen. The only explanation which 

 Donisthorpe suggests for the appearance of the sexual forms is 

 that he had fed the colony an unusually large amount of animal 

 food. 



