114 SPOLIA ZEYLANICA. 



off pieces of its luursel and went away with their booty, without 

 any signs of protestation on the part of the robbed one. I 

 was not able to discover the meaning of this action, but I do 

 not think that it can be called feeding. Moreover, there was 

 plenty of food around, and every worker could have fed 

 plentifully without robbing his fellow. Nor can this be 

 regarded as a division of labour, as suggested by Escherich, 

 viz., the parts of gatherer and carrier, for only very small 

 pieces were removed by the intruders, the rest being trans- 

 ported to the nest by the gatherer itself. 



I have never seen workers deserting and encouraging others 

 to do so by those rapid and abrupt movements which Dr. 

 Escherich calls " zitterstosse." The latter, of course, I have 

 seen many times, but I could never discover their meaning. 

 Dr. Escherich and others believe them to be some kind of 

 signal, warning or otherwise, but what then can be the 

 explanation of the fact that these " zitterstosse " are executed 

 so often when there is no one near to receive the message ? 

 There can be no doubt about it, that the delicate sensitive 

 organs of the termites would acquaint them with the fact that 

 no other termite was within reach. Or is this to be regarded 

 merely as a reflex movement induced by some unknown 

 cause ? But then it could not be a signal, or it would 

 naturally produce some effect upon the other individuals, 

 and would run along the line, or it would affect at least the 

 individual to which the signal was conveyed. All I could see 

 was that the latter sometimes replied in the same way, and 

 then went along without altering its course ; but still more 

 often it paid no attention to this supposed signal, pursuing its 

 course and trying to get out of the way of the " signaller." 



Dr. Escherich further states that workers of monoceros are in 

 the habit of dismembering and devouring their dead comrades. 

 I have repeated his experiment by killing some of them, with 

 the following result. When a termite happened to discover 

 its dead comrade, it went back to return with several others. 

 They surrounded the corpse and soon afterwards went away. 



