WTES ON INDIAN ANTS. 53 



I should mention that I always arranged my island within a few 

 fort of the sumo spot, and now T often wonder why I never changed 

 the position completely, and then watched the result. 



After reading Sir John Lubbock's most charming work on ants, 

 I thought I would try a few simple experiments to see if I could in- 

 fluence my ants by means of colours. I first scattered sugar about 

 my verandah for a day or two, by which, means I attracted consider- 

 able numbers of ants of different genera and species, particularly 

 Diaeamma, Solenopsts, and Tapinoma. I then placed sugar on 

 different coloured cards (subsequently substituting the intensely 

 brilliant colours of surface-papers for the cards), making various 

 changes from time to time according to my judgment. These 

 experiments I kept up for a good many weeks, but I could never 

 find that colour influenced my ants in any way. I do not attach 

 any value to this, as my experiments were very crude, and generally 

 interrupted by the gaps of from Sunday to Sunday, and I only 

 mention the circumstance as affording some traits of ant character. 

 Tapinoma was always first at the sugar, and swarmed indiscriminately 

 over everything alike. 



Diaeamma vagans was fairly quick at the sugar, but appeared to 

 be influenced chiefly by the card nearest her nest, and perhaps in 

 some degree by the one with the finest grains. 



Solenopsis gemminatus seemed only to blunder on the cards by acci- 

 dent, and without, as far as I could observe, any particular signs of 

 intelligence. Tapinoma ate sugar on the spot, and also carried off 

 grains. Diaeamma carried off the sugar as fast as possible, but ate 

 none. Solenopsis ate sugar on the spot, but did not carry any away. 



By alarming the ants by striking the cards, shaking the paper, 

 or dropping fine powdered sugar on them, Diaeamma vagans and 

 Tapinoma would give a little start, but, recovering themselves in- 

 stantly, would seize the nearest and biggest grain, and make off at 

 express speed. Solenopsis would start, sometimes tumble over one 

 another, and then make off in alarm and without any method or 

 precision. According to my idea, Diaeamma, by a number of little 

 traits which I cannot describe, but which as a whole made a great 

 impression on me, showed the most intelligence, Tapinoma the most 

 audacity. Solenopsis I do not like to judge rashly from an imperfect 



