250 INSECT MISCELLANIES. 



place a number of large ant-flies in a box, the wino-s 

 of many of them will, after some time, gradually fall 

 off like autumnal leaves. This circumstance is pecu- 

 liar to the large sort ; for if you confine the small 

 ones (meaning the winged males) ever so long, their 

 wings will continue fixed, and cannot be separated 

 without some difficulty." 



Again, Mr. Gould remarks, that " the casting of 

 their wings is an instance peculiar to the large ant- 

 flies. These are, to other insects, their highest deco- 

 rations, and the want of them lessens their beauty, 

 and shortens their life. On the reverse, a large ant- 

 fly gains by the loss, and is afterwards promoted to 

 a throne, and drops these external ornaments as em- 

 blems of too much levity for a sovereign*." 



We have, in several instances, verified these facts 

 respecting the female ants losing their wings, and by 

 confining them under glasses, have twice observed 

 the process t; but after the details already given, it 

 would be superfluous to record these experiments 

 here. 



When the females are thus disencumbered of their 

 wings, they prepare for the new duties of their situa- 

 tion, by constructing suitable chambers in the first 

 piece of moist earth which they find fit for the pur- 

 pose. Those which we have placed in confinement 

 performed similar labours, under various circum- 

 stances ; for we found that a single female would 

 work at the excavation as well as when several were 

 put together, and also when they had several workers 

 to assist them they did not appear to relax in assiduity |. 

 These observations accord, in most particulars, with 

 the experiments of Gould and Huber. The former, 

 on opening mole-hills, found clusters of six or seven 



* Account of English AntS; I'imo, London, 1747. 

 t J.R. J J.R. 



