WITH THE PUCERONS. Qi1 
this precious manna*, upon which 
they (the ants) immediately seize _; 
but this is the least of their talents, for 
they know how to obtain it at any time 
they wish. 
I observed a branch of a thistle, cover- 
ed with Brown Ants and pucerons, and 
noticed that the latter regulated the time 
when they discharged this secretion ; but 
I remarked, that it very rarely passed at 
the natural period, and that the pucerons, 
stationed at some distance from the ants, 
scattered it afar off, by a movement some- 
what resembling the kicking or wincing 
ofa horse. How happened it, then, that 
the ants, wandering upon the branches, | 
displayed bellies remarkable for their 
size, and evidently filled with some kind 
of liquid. ‘This is what I learned, by 
watching closely a single ant, whose 
* This substance may be frequently seen on the 
leaves of the oak, lime, and other trees. It has a 
glossy appearance, and is remarkably sweet to the 
taste. The Abbé Boisier de Sauvages states, that 
bees will occasionally wage war with ants, to ob- 
tain possession of this honied secretion. — T. 
