20 The Naturalist in Nicaragua 
this duty. I have followed up these columns often; generally 
they led to dense masses of impenetrable brushwood, but 
twice they led me to cracks in the ground, down which the 
ants dragged their prey. These habitations are only tempo- 
rary, for in a few days not an ant would be seen in the neigh- 
bourhood; all would have moved off to fresh hunting-grounds. 
Another much larger species of foraging ant (Eczton 
hamaia) hunts sometimes in dense armies, sometimes in 
columns, according to the prey it may be after. When in 
columns, I found that it was generally, if not always, in 
search of the nests of another ant (Hypoclinea sp.), which 
rear their young in holes in rotten trunks of fallen timber, 
and are very common in cleared places. The Ecitons hunt 
about in columns, which branch off in various directions. 
When a fallen log is reached, the column spreads out over it, 
searching through all the holes and cracks. The workers 
are of various sizes, and the smallest are here of use, for they 
squeeze themselves into the narrowest holes, and search out 
their prey in the furthest ramifications of the nests. When 
a nest of the Hypoclinea is attacked, the ants rush out, 
carrying the larve and pupe in their jaws, only to be im- 
mediately despoiled of them by the Ecitons, which are 
running about in every direction with great swiftness. 
Whenever they come across a Hypoclinea carrying a larva 
or pupa, they capture the burden so quickly, that I could 
never ascertain exactly how it was done. 
As soon as an Eciton gets hold of its prey, it rushes off 
back along the advancing column, which is composed of two 
sets, one hurrying forward, the other returning laden with 
their booty, but all and always in the greatest haste and 
apparent hurry. About the nest which they are harrying 
everything is confusion, Ecitons run here and there and 
everywhere in the greatest haste and disorder; but the 
result of all this apparent confusion is that scarcely a single 
Hypoclinea gets away with a pupa or larva. I never saw 
the Ecitons injure the Hypoclineas themselves, they were 
always contented with despoiling them of their young. The 
ant that is attacked is a very cowardly species, and never 
shows fight. I often found it running about sipping at the 
glands of leaves, or milking aphides, leaf-hoppers, or scale- 
insects that it found unattended by other ants. On the 
