on some Carnivorous Insects. 325 



after him : the two previous Mylabris had escaped to all 

 appearance quite without damage excepting for a slight 

 wound on an abdomen. The fourth Mylabris had, as I 

 ascertained, quite exhausted its juice. It had latterly been 

 receiving a good deal of attention from the ants, which 

 were at this moment busily cutting off one of the elytra 

 and were carrying its owner along. They soon abandoned 

 it again, but when I removed it later I found it to be 

 dead. The large $ Zonocerus was lying where originally 

 placed, but had been reduced a good deal and was still a 

 great centre of attraction. The small fly was still lying 

 neglected in the midst of the ants. A Mylothris rueppelli 

 was now broken up and carried off, as were, without 

 breaking, a housefly and a common cockroach. Three 

 of the ants themselves which I killed and put back 

 in the column were felt by large numbers of their comrades, 

 but always passed by until suddenly one smallish ant, 

 coming across one of them, seemed to think it her duty to lift 

 and carry it along. I removed one of the other two and 

 placed it in another ant-army of the same species which was 

 busily crossing a garden path at a considerable distance 

 away, with, as so often, a drive at each side. It, too, was 

 neglected for the three or four minutes during which I 

 watched. 



The first ants had shown no special ferocity towards 

 myself, but this second party at once attacked me, and I 

 had to keep a sharp eye on my feet. Judging that they 

 might also be in the mood to take more highly unpleasant 

 insects than their comrades had accepted, I brought over 

 an Epilachna, a Mylabris (adding a second from the two that 

 had escaped), the small fly, the Amauris larva and one of 

 the Acraea larvae ; all these were still being neglected by 

 my first band of ants. Placed just beside the column all 

 were at once attacked furiously. The Acraea larva (it 

 was the larger one) was gradually shorn of spines and 

 finally carried into a drive, as were both Mylabris and the 

 Coccinellid. The Amauris larva was attacked just as 

 furiously and was apparently freely bitten, for blots of 

 greenish black juice sprinkled the ground on either side 

 of it. These seemed to fall just away from it : were they 

 emitted, e. g. by the filaments ? But the original attackers 

 gradually desisted and left it, though it was still for some 

 time attacked by groups of ants that apparently came 

 across it for the first time. Finally it was left alone 



