362 ANNUAL REPOET SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1925 



a battlinf^ nation of a lack of understanding of the psycholooy oi 

 its antagonists. It is a far cry from the varying psychology of the 

 different races of human beings to the vastly diflferent psychology of 

 insects. But how important it is to attempt at least to understand 

 such psychology as they possess, and how little do we know about it 

 now! But we have a beginning, Bouvier's admirable "La Vie 

 psychique des Insectes " brings together what we know now, and 

 therefore forms a starting point for experimental work and study 

 which may lead to important results. 



The psychology of insects, of course, brings us at once to the 

 disputed borderland of instinct and intelligence. We are none of 

 us ready to adopt Ferenczy's classificatory name for the human 

 species {Hoiiio immwralis semisapiens) as contrasted with his ant 

 name {Formica sapiens diligens)^ nor do we misunderstand 

 Wheeler's exquisite satire on human society which he entitled " Ter- 

 mitodoxa," but, for want of a better name, we may call psychological 

 a lot of insect phenomena which need investigation. 



Insects are controlled by nature very much better and more 

 effectively than by man himself — assuming tliat man's efforts are 

 not a part of nature (as they surely are, since man is a true ecological 

 factor). Many more insects are destroyed by their parasites of dif- 

 ferent kinds and by their other natural enemies than are destroyed 

 by man. In fact, man has really been making things easy for the 

 insects — he has been facilitating the multiplication and spread of 

 his own worst enemies, and at the same time he has been groaning 

 and complaining and suffering from the effects of his own stupidity. 



The trite words " going back to nature " have an especial signifi- 

 ance in this connection. We can not go back to nature, in a way, 

 if we wish to preserve our rank as the dominant species and still 

 keep on increasing all the time. We must continue to "upset the 

 balance " and keep on upsetting it more and more if we are to feed 

 our increasing millions. We must control all possible food resources. 

 But we must get back to nature in so far that Ave must study all these 

 natural control factors as they affect antagonistic species, and we 

 must utilize them. 



But to utilize them we must first understand them, and the word 

 " understand " does not mean half knowledge. Generalizations are 

 nowhere more dangerous than here. I have been studying some of 

 the smaller aspects of this subject for more than 40 years, and I have 

 seen my imagined or expressed generalizations fall by the dozen 

 through the work of keen-eyed and competent younger observers. 

 And yet the enormous complex of interacting organisms, really fight- 



