384 CLAUDE FULLER. 



old in appearance. There is no doubt that in the case of 

 these gardens enlargement is effected by the application of 

 additional layers. It is reasonably supposed that a cavity is 

 first made of some minimum dimension and filled Avith a 

 fungus-garden ; when necessity arises, it is enlarged by the 

 lateral extension of the floor and by a general heightening of 

 the vault. At periods the core deteriorates and crumbles 

 away, and so a concavit}' is formed. There is some evidence, 

 however, that the worn-out part of the fungus- bed is 

 renewed. 



T. badius shows a decided preference for the bark of 

 trees, but only the dead bark is removed. To accomplish this 

 the termites swathe the tree trunks with a thin shell of clay, 

 carrying the shell to a height of even 20 ft. It feeds upon 

 dead grass and the droppings of animals, and it is also a pest 

 to wooden structures, wherever it can work undisturbed. 

 Unlike other species it does not tunnel into the wood, but 

 removes the surface, layer by layer, working as on tree trunks 

 under a shell of clay. In houses it may destroy the flooring 

 boards, removing the wood-fibre piecemeal from beneath, 

 working along the length of the boards, but always working 

 under a canopy of clay. 



One very unusual nest of this species was found in a dis- 

 used stable. Here several sheets of corrugated iron had laid 

 for some time upon some litter. On lifting the iron it was 

 found that the concavities had been freed of debris and 

 long, narrow fungus-gardens built within the spaces. In 

 addition to this the colony had taken advantage of a space 

 behind a sheet of iron leaning against the wall, and by 

 building up clay partitions it had converted the space into 

 a roomy cavity and filled it with a large fungus-garden. 



Mr. J. B. Gordon has sent to me a queen-cell (PI. XXX, 

 figs. 4 and 5), with its living contents taken from a nest near 

 Pretoria. This particular cell is not only remarkable for its 

 size but also because it differs from any other in the collection 

 in having a well-defined exterior. It can only be inferred 

 that the cell was removed from an older nest than any 



