NOTES. 395 
NOTES. 
Note on the emergence of Winged Termites—Though the 
appearance of swarms of winged termites is a common occur- 
rence, very little is known of the circumstances attending their 
emergence from the nest. It may be worth while, therefore, 
to place on record a few observations on a flight of a species 
which has been kindly identified by Mr. G. M. Henry as 
Termes obscuriceps, Wasm. 
The nest is situated beneath the verandah of my bungalow 
at Peradeniya, and the insects chose to emerge through cracks 
in the cement at the entrance. At midday on December 11, 
1916, my attention was directed to the spot by a squirrel, which 
was devouring the workers, and shaking its head from time to 
time when a soldier bit it on the nose. The appearance of 
worker termites at the entrance to the nest at midday is 
somewhat unusual, but, as subsequent events proved, they were 
engaged in narrowing the crack in the cement by lining its 
sides with earth, preparatory to the exit of the winged insects 
in the evening. 
The flight began at 5.57 p.m. The main exit, which may be 
called A, was a narrow slit, 1} inches long. Besides this, there 
was a small circular hole, B, about a quarter of an inch in 
“C 
Ace 
‘B 
diameter, about 6 inches from A, and another slightly larger 
circular hole, C, about a foot from A, on the other side. The 
majority of the winged insects emerged from A; only a few 
from Band C. All the holes were surrounded by workers 
and soldiers, which, in the case of A, formed a dense crowd 
about six inches in diameter. 
The main flight occupied about 13 minutes, from 5.57 to 
6.10 p.m. During this time winged insects poured out in a 
continuous stream. Between 6.10 and 6.15 P.M. only nine 
emerged, and from 6.15-6.20 only three, all from A. At 
6.17 all the workers and soldiers round C had re-entered the 
hole, and this had happened at B by 6.20 p.m. By this time 
