FECUNDATION OF ANTS. Q7 
the crowd by which they are constantly 
surrounded seems to embarrass their 
movements ; they soon come to the de- 
termination of taking flight, and seeking 
in the air a wider theatre, in which they 
can accomplish the wish of nature. But 
what are those dazzling objects we see on | 
that little hillock rising above the grass ? 
They are the male Ants who come forth 
by hundreds from their subterranean resi- 
dence, and display their silvery and 
transparent wings as they wander over 
the surface of their nest. ‘The females, 
who are in much smaller number, soon 
join their paramours, proudly displaying 
their big and highly bronzed abdomen, 
and occasionally extending their glitter- 
ing wings, whose ever-varying lustre 
adds much to the beauty. of this interest- 
ing assemblage. 
Disorder and agitation are now mani- 
fest in the ant-hill; the bustle increases 
every moment, the winged insects climb 
with great briskness the neighbouring 
plants, followed by a numerous retinue 
. 
