56 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



disclosed in both seasons use one kind of gall for the winter 

 and another kind for the summer. — Francis Walker. 



' The Naturalist in Nicaragua :'' a Narrative of a Residence 

 at the Gold-mines of Chontales, in the Savannahs, and 

 Forests; with Observations on Animals and Plants in 

 reference to the Theory of Evolution of Living Forms. 

 By Thomas Belt, F.G.S. London : John Murray, 1874. 

 Post 8vo ; 404 pp. letterpress, and 26 Illustrations on 

 stone and wood. 

 [At Brighton anglers bait for mackerel with a bit of tin : 

 it glitters in the sun, and proves far more attractive to these 

 silly fishes than substantial, wholesome, and natural food. 

 Mr. Belt baits for Natural- History readers with "evolution of 

 of living forms." He evidently aims to capture a shoal of 

 naturalists, and considers this the most "killing bait." I 

 think he under-rates us; I think he under-values our attain- 

 ments and our intelligence : we are not, like the mackerel, to 

 be caught by tin or tinsel ; and this very announcement on 

 the title-page had well-nigh induced me to close the book 

 unread. Fortunately 1 did not, for ' The Naturalist in 

 Nicaragua' is a capital book, — brimful of information, and 

 worthy of attentive study by the most profound entomologist. 

 I have no space in this journal for an extended review, but 

 1 will make some entomological extracts, which cannot fail 

 both to instruct and delight my readers, and will recommend 

 the book far more than anything I can write in its praise. — 

 Edward Newman.'\ 



Ecitons, or Foraging Ants. — "I saw many large armies of 

 this, or a closely allied, species in the forest. My attention 

 was generally first called to them by the twittering of some 

 small birds, belonging to several different species, that follow 

 the ants in the woods. On approaching, a dense body of the 

 ants — three or four yards wide, and so numerous as to blacken 

 the ground — would be seen moving ra])idly in one direction, 

 examining every cranny, and underneath every fallen leaf. 

 On the flanks, and in advance of the main body, smaller 

 columns would be pushed out; these smaller columns would 

 generally first flush the cockroaches, grasshoppers, and spiders. 



