1879.] on the Habits of Ants. 175 



Yet I am far from denying that such cases do exist. For instance, 

 in one of my nests of Formiea fusca was a jioor ant, which had como 

 into the world without antenna). Not having previously met with 

 such an individual, I watched her with great interest, but she never 

 appeared to leave the nest. At length one day I found her wander- 

 ing about outside in an aimless sort of manner, and apparently not 

 knowing her way at all. After a while she fell in with some 

 specimens of Lasius JIavus, who directly attacked her. I at once set 

 myself to separate them, but whether owing to the wounds she had 

 received from her enemies, or my rough, though well-meant, handling, 

 or both, she was evidently sorely wounded, and lay helplessly on tho 

 ground. After some time, another F. fusca from her nest came by. 

 She examined the poor sufferer carefully, then picked her up tenderly 

 and carried her away into the nest. It would have been difficult 

 for anyone who witnessed this scene to have denied to this ant the 

 possession of humane feelings. 



Indeed, I have often been surprised that in certain emergencies, ants 

 render one another so little assistance. The tenacity with which they 

 retain their hold on an enemy they have once seized, is well known. 

 M. Mocquerys even assures us that the Indians of Brazil made use of 

 this quality in the case of wounds, causing an ant to bite the two lips 

 of the cut, and this bring them close, after which the ant's head is 

 cut off, and thus holds the lips of the wound together. He asserts 

 that he has often seen natives, with wounds in course of healing, by 

 the assistance of a row of seven or eight ants' heads ! Now I have 

 often observed that some of my ants had the heads of others hanging 

 on to their legs for a considerable time, and as this must certainly be 

 very inconvenient, it seems remarkable that their friends should 

 not relieve them of such an awkward encumbrance. 



As mentioned in the previous lecture, one of my queen ants 

 (Formica fusca) bad a large mite on the under side of her head. 

 She could not remove it, and not one of her companions, for more 

 than three months, performed this kind office for her. Being a queen, 

 she never left the nest, and I therefore had no opportunity of helping 

 her. Since then I have met with several similar cases. Moreover, 

 I have often put ants, which had become smeared with a sticky 

 substance, on the boards close to my nests, and it was the exception 

 when their companions took any notice of or sought to disentangle 

 them ; though sooner or later this was generally done. 



. I have on a previous occasion endeavoured to give you a general 

 account of the habits of ants, and I will therefore now confine myself 

 to certain points. 



Before going further, I think it will perhaps interest you to see 

 two or three species of ants, and with the kind help of Professor 

 Tyndall, Mr. Cottrell, and the electric lamp, I shall hope to be able to 

 show you some on the screen. At the same time I must ask your 

 indulgence, if they do not behave as could be wished, for it is a nervous 

 matter to appear before a Koyal Institution audience. 



