The Red Ants 



know what their protoplasm and their nucleus 

 have to say to it. 



Is this unknown sense localized in a particu- 

 lar part of the Wasp and the Bee? Is it ex- 

 ercised by means of a special organ? We im- 

 mediately think, of the antennae. The 

 antennae are what we always fall back upon 

 when the insect's actions are not quite clear 

 to us ; we gladly put down to them whatever 

 is most necessary to our arguments. For that 

 matter, I had plenty of fairly good reasons for 

 suspecting them of containing the sense of di- 

 rection. When the Hairy Ammophila'^ is 

 searching for the Grey Worm, it is with 

 her antennae, those tiny fingers continually 

 fumbling at the soil, that she seems to recog- 

 nize the presence of the underground prey. 

 Could not those inquisitive filaments, which 

 seem to guide the insect when hunting, also 

 guide it when travelling? This remained to 

 be seen; and I did see. 



I took some Mason-bees and amputated 

 their antennas with the scissors, as closely as 



*A Sand-wasp, who hunts the Grey Worm, or Cater- 

 pillar of the Turnip-moth, to serve as food for her grubs. 

 For other varieties of the Aramophila, cf. Insect Life: 

 chap. XV. — Translator's Note. 



129 



