THE FOUNDING OF COLONIES BY ATTA SEXDENS. 363 



stomach contents, but directly ^vith the kohh-abi growth of the 

 fungus. 



A new period of existence for the colony begins with the appear- 

 ance of the first workers. On the one hand, new" necessities arise, as 

 the young workers bring a decidedW good appetite along wdth them. 

 On the other hand, no inconsiderable help is afforded to the mother 

 ant in the care of the fungus garden and the brood, these workers 

 displaying from the first moment of their existence a purpose to be 

 true to their name. The manifold intelligence and dexterity of the 

 Atta female is by no means dispensed with at once, particularly as 

 the workers hatch out gradually. After the appearance of the first 

 set of workers, which almost uniformly are of a very small variety, 

 measuring only 2 mm. in length, their number increases daily by 

 from 3 to 4. Soon after this (in rare cases on the very first day) 

 there appears another variety with a body length of 3 mm. The 

 duty of cleansing, smoothing, and putting into physical condition 

 these first workers falls naturally upon the queen. But after these 

 have come uj^on the field of action they take up the future care of 

 the metamorphosed pupse up to the time of their coming out into 

 the adult state, Avhereas the queen shares in these activities quite 

 infrequently. The care of the fungus-garden is from this time on 

 attended to mutually by the mother and the workers. The former 

 continues to manure the garden in the usual manner. The young 

 workers also share in this work, depositing the excreta in the form 

 of minute yellowish drops. It is droll to note with wdiat scrupulous 

 care they select the desired places for this enriching, and how the 

 mother ant approaches and displays an interest in the operation, 

 inspecting the places and assisting to prepare them. In addition, 

 the young workers take up the task of transporting little masses of 

 the fungus mycelium to the freshl}'- manured areas, so that the ele- 

 vated border of the garden appears built up here and there with 

 minute mounds. On account of this united activity on the part 

 of queen and workers in enriching the fungus-garden, its dimensions 

 increase considerably, rarely, however, going beyond 2.5 cm. before 

 the process of leaf cutting begins. The larvae, the number of which 

 rapidly increases, are still fed with eggs. It is of interest to ob- 

 serve how in this task the workers gradually relieve the mother-ant 

 of the larger share. It often happens that the mother-ant places 

 an Qgg in the regular way against the mandibles of the larva, but 

 it is frequently seen that it is not satisfactorily arranged or is simply 

 deposited in the nest; in the latter case the workers pick it up and 

 give it to the larva. The workers also stroke the larvae with their 

 antennae in the same manner as the mother-ant, so as to cause them 

 to move their mandibles when the &gg is given to them. I have 



