outline of the Life History of Lycaena arion. 305 



ting the thyme. The larvae in both nests walk about in 

 their leisurely way, when the ants are induced to leave the 

 crowded spots where they happen to be ; but usually when 

 the nest is first looked at on removing the screen they are 

 not easily seen, and are hidden amongst the crowded 

 patches of ants and brood ; the ants seem to take no more 

 notice of them than they do of each other. 



August 15th. — The largest larva appears to be still 

 larger, certainly more than twice the bulk of its first 

 dimensions, and quite 1 mm. longer. 



August 15th. — The largest larva with M. scabrinodis var. 

 sabuleti measures 5*0 mm. ; having come up to the glass he 

 was easily measured; he was equally increased in height 

 and width, and looked decidedly paler than when small. 



In regard to the carrying in of the larva to the nest by 

 the ant, the question arises as to whether the ant or the 

 larva gives the actual signal for the portage. My own 

 impression is that the initiative lies with the ant. In the 

 prehminary process of milking, if the ant walks over the 

 larva, it slows, but hardly stops walking, but as soon as 

 the ant taps with its antennae for milk, and afterwards 

 whilst the mouth of the ant is applied to the gland, the 

 larva rests quite quiet, with its head retracted ; the moment 

 the ant withdraws, the larva extrudes its head and begins 

 walking. As the time for portage arrives, the ant taps 

 the larva more forwards, but not, so far as I noticed, very 

 differently to what it had done before, and then the larva 

 takes the attitude for being carried. In one case, the ant, 

 from the attitude of sucking the honey, made a little gallop 

 forwards several times, and it was after one of these that 

 the attitude for being carried was assumed. On another 

 occasion, when the ant made no very special forward 

 movement, the larva assumed the special attitude, to 

 which the ant paid no attention ; it seemed probable that 

 the ant had inadvertently done something that the larva 

 took to be the expected signal, but the ant had clearly not 

 reached that stage in the negotiations. Were it the larva 

 that gave the signal, then the ant ought to have responded 

 whether quite ready or not. 



August 17th. — After frequently watching the larvae in 

 the nest ; all of them have grown more or less, the largest 

 is over 5 and probably nearly 6 mm. long; the impression 

 is received that the ants pay no attention whatever to the 

 larvae ; when they meet them they walk over them, never 



TRANS. ENT. SOC. LOND. 1915. — PARTS III, IV. (JUNE) X 



