THE FORMICIDAL. 197 



when it is necessary — being influenced by the instinct of doing 

 a certain definite duty ; at least this appears to be consistent 

 with correct observation. Many authors have imagined that the 

 industrious insects that Hve in communities obey certain chiefs, 

 and have, as it were, a sort of government. The opinion appears 

 to have originated in a very simple manner — because such a 

 state of things exists amongst men, and appears to be necessary; 

 but all the best established facts relating to insects which live in 

 communities, such as ants, wasps, and bees, prove that every one 

 has an equal share in the government of the commonwealth, and 

 that the so-called kings and queens, which are the objects of 

 particular attentions, have no authority, and are in no way con- 

 cerned with the occupations and labours of the rest of the tribe. 

 The ants, like almost all the Hyincnoptcra, are born in a very 

 rudimentary condition, for their development within the c-g^ has 

 not progressed much. The larvse are even incapable of taking 

 the food which is within their reach, for their mouth-pieces are 

 very small and feeble, so that it is necessary that the nourishment 

 should be placed inside their mouths. Thus they may be said 

 to be constant objects of care and anxiety to others of the 

 ■community. The nursing, which is attended to with wonderful 

 perseverance, is carried out by the workers, who are first-rate 

 nurses, and at the same time admirable architects and builders 

 of spacious and comfortable nurseries. 



The united species of ants constitute the family of the Forini- 

 cidcr, and are very readily distinguished from other Hyincnoptera. 

 They have a triangularly-shaped head, bent antennae, the first 

 Joints of which, always very long, are stalk-like ; they have a large 

 upper lip, strong mandibles, and the jaws and lower lip are short ; 

 the legs are long and slender, and the abdomen, which is more or 

 less oval, is attached to the thorax by a short and narrow waist. 

 The ants without wings, which are most commonly observed 

 by everybody, and which run about roads and paths, and which 

 have a very narrow thorax, are the Avorkers, or neuters ; they 

 crawl over plants and up walls, and arc found everywhere. But 

 the males and females are only to be noticed at certain times of 

 the year, and can be distinguished at once from the workers by 

 iheir possessing wings, and a very broad thorax. There are a 



