xlii 



Tlie previous evening I had taken the special precaution of 

 having raw cotton (kapok) stuffed all round the door to 

 prevent entry to the safe. In spite of this they had got in, 

 but did not seem able to get out. I expected the fifty odd 

 butterflies that were drying would all have perished, but was 

 agreeably surprised to find that only those caught within the 

 past two days had been touched. 



These included Salamis anacardii nebulosa Trim., Neptis 

 saclava Bd., Ewphaedra eleus orientis Rothsch., Cymothoe, and 

 two fine females of Euxanthe tiberius Gr.-Sm., and Papilio 

 dardanus Brown, $ f. lamhorni Poult., respectively. The bodies 

 and antennae only were eaten.* The only others injured 

 were a mantis and the head of another mantis that had 

 been captured a week before but was not yet dry. 



Some fifty bird-skins taken during the previous week were 

 untouched, but one, which the native skinner had insufficiently 

 poisoned on June 26, appeared to be attacked. This was a 

 Guinea Fowl (N. mitraia), but, after the swarming ants had 

 been shaken off it, I found that they had not touched the 

 skin but were removing some maggots from the wings. Some 

 500 skins were in boxes which were not ant-proof, and these 

 had not been molested at all. 



Later in the day I saw a pleasing sequel to the affray 

 between the Lesser Stink- Ants and Siafu; beneath the door- 

 step at the opposite end of the house from that where the 

 affray had taken place, a little heap of dirt and Siafu heads 

 caught my eye. I therefore watched the entrance to the 

 hole outside which it had accumulated, and presently a Stink- 

 Ant came to the opening and dropped a Siafu head, presently 

 another came with a bit of grit, then one with another head 

 and so on. I took the liberty of removing this dump and found 

 that it was only the Siafu soldiers tliat had been beheaded ; the 



* The remains of the above butterflies, except the Cymothoe and 

 Euxanthe, were received — also the Hesperid Tngiades flesiisF.,TeieTTed 

 to as eaten by the Siafu in a letter of 11. vii. 21. All bore the date 

 4. vii. 21. Both antennae of the Salamis and Ewphaedra were present 

 and one of the Neptis. The shrivelled eyes probably showed that the 

 heads had been eaten out. The thorax (the only part of the body) of 

 Tagiades, but not of the three with heads, appeared to be empty. The 

 Papilio dardanus (left wings only) extended the range of the female f. 

 lamhorni over 100 miles southward (Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., 1917, 

 p. 335).— E.B.P. 



