OF MELAMPYRUM PRATENSE. 417 



actually seen ants carrying them off, and I thought it 

 would be worth while to determine this. 



Accordingly I took ten seeds and placed them just 

 outside one of my domesticated nests of Lasius niger. 

 A certain number of ants were outside, and I saw 

 several come up to the seeds, but they took no notice 

 of them. I left them lying there for two days. I then 

 tried them with another nest, the roof of which con- 

 sisted of two plates of glass, side by side, but with an 

 interval between them. I placed the seeds in this 

 interval, and uncovered one of the sides. The ants 

 immediately began carrying the pupae which were thus 

 exposed to the light to the other (covered) part of the 

 nest, in doing which they necessarily passed close to 

 the seeds, but they did not take the slightest notice of 

 them. This operation was finished by 11 a.m., and I 

 left them undisturbed till 12, the seeds remaining un- 

 noticed and untouched. I then moved the cover from 

 one half of the nest to the other, and the ants imme- 

 diately began transporting the pupae to the shaded 

 half. One or two of them examined the seeds, not one 

 of which, however, was moved. This took about an 

 hour. At 4 P.M., however, three of the seeds had been 

 carried in, and the next day at 7 a.m. two more 

 seeds had been carried in. I then removed them, 

 and put them just outside one of my nests of F.fusca. 



August 31. 7 A.M. None have been touched. I 

 now put the covering close to, but not over them. The 

 ants took no notice of them. 



September 2. I now placed them just in the en- 

 trance of the nest, and covered over a part just outside : 

 the ants collected as usual under the cover. I then 

 removed the cover just inside the nest, so that the 

 ants to reach it had to pass among the seeds. They, 

 however, came in, but did not move a single seed. I 

 once again moved the cover outside, and they followed 

 it as before, but without moving the seeds. 



£E 



