1907.] Wheeler, Fungus-growing Ants of North America. 779 



by some excellent photogravures of the fungus gardens. In Plate LIII, 

 Fig. 57, I have reproduced a portion of one of his figures showing the 

 small oidial heads apparently of the natural size. 



Knuth (1899) observed the fungus gardens of a couple of unidentified 

 species of Termes at Buitenzorg, but his description is very meager. 



jVIme. Errington de la Croix (1900) has published some notes on the 

 Malaccan Termes carhonarius which show that the nests of this species 

 contain fungus gardens, although they were not recognized as such. She 

 merely states that they were " formed (perhaps?) by agglomerated eggs in a 

 nutritive substance." 



Haviland (1902) figures the nest and gardens of Termes malayanus and 

 mentions a number of species of this genus from Africa and southern Asia 

 as fungus growers. These comprise the species of the hellicosus group 

 {T. hellicosus, dives, fatalis, gilvus, azarelli, carhonarius, malaccensis, mal- 

 ayanus, natalensis), of the vulgaris group (T. vulgaris, angustatus, capensis, 

 tap-ohanes, hadius, latericius), and of the incertus group (T. incertus and 

 pallidus). Among these are the largest forms of the genus. He states that 

 neoteinic forms, that is, fertile males and females which never develop wings, 

 are not known to occur among fungus-growing termites. The soldiers of 

 some of the species are aggressive and able to make sounds, thus recalling the 

 behavior of the Atta soldiers. He says "In the section of the fungus-growers 

 to which T. hellicosus belongs the workers run away to their subterranean 

 passages when the nest is being opened, whilst the soldiers stay to defend 

 the nest; generally the smaller soldiers are more active than the larger, for 

 they run about whilst the larger occupy the crevices of the nest and the 

 cavities of the fungus beds, where they wait and bite at an^-thing which comes 

 within reach. The soldiers of this group can generally produce the rattling 

 sound. In this accomplishment, T. carhonarius has reached the highest 

 stage of development for the soldiers can hammer in rh^ilimic unison. At 

 first a few begin irregularly, then they get into time, and the others take it up. 

 Every soldier in the exposed portion of the nest stands up and hammers with 

 its head; the blow is given thrice in very quick succession, and then there 

 is an interval of two seconds. The noise they produce reminded me of 

 wavelets lapping on a shore. This trick of hammering is seen in only a few 

 species; it is clearly a modification of the shaking movements so often seen 

 in workers." 



Sjostedt (1896, 1900, 1903, 1904) has added a number of species to the 

 list of fungus-growing termites from Africa. Such are, for exam))le, Termes 

 lilljehorgi and the allied goliath, gahonrnsis, nohilis, ampins, grafus and 

 vitrialatus. According to his latest paper (1904) T. franfivaalrnsis is also 

 to be included in this series of forms. In his monograph on the African 



