1890 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



457 



they were not very good layers last fall, so I do not 

 care much for them." 



" Well, then, one cause of absconding is due to 

 the queens, and can be traced out thus: The 

 queens being- on the decline— or poor— and the colo- 

 nies being light in bees in the spring, the queens 

 did not get to laying early enough to get a batch of 

 young bees hatched out before the crisis came: and 

 finding that they were weakening instead of gain- 

 ing, and not being able to cover and care for their 

 brood, thej' became discouraged, and swarmed out; 

 when if they could have held out a few days longer 

 until the brood commenced to hatch, they would 

 not have swarmed out, because a few young baby- 

 bees would have held them. I have given such col- 

 onies a few young bees from other hives, with good 

 success, when discovered in this condition. If the 

 weather had been favorable, all of these light stocks 

 would have pulled through all right; but we have 

 had about the hardest spring I ever knew, and we 

 shall have no light colonies this summer to bother 

 with, as they are all gone where the woodbine 

 twineth." 



"Have you engaged all your help yet for this 

 season?" 



" No: I am two men short." 



" What are you going to do in that case?" 



" Well, I have got to run three apiaries myself— 

 two out-apiaries, besides this one at home: so when 

 you are enjoying yourself in your one apiary you 

 can think of me with three to manage, besides the 

 other boys to look after." 



" But, how are you going to do so much yourself, 

 pray tell?" 



" Well, I am going to try to prevent swarming in 

 the two out-apiaries, and the home apiary I shall 

 run principally for extracting; and I hope, by giv- 

 ing them room enough, they will swarm but very 

 little if at all; and one of the out-apiaries I shall 

 manage by removing the queens just before they 

 prepare to swarm, according to Elwood's method, 

 and in the other out-apiary I shall try to prevent 

 swarming, according to Manum's method, which T 

 do not care to tell you about yet, as I am not sure 

 it will prove practical on a large scale. I have 

 tried It with only a few colonies." 



" Well, I hope you will be successful; but I think 

 you will have your hands full before the season is 

 over." 



" Thanks. I assure you I shall work faithfully 

 for success, and succeed 1 must, in some way." 



Bristol, Vt., May, 1890. A. E. Manum. 



THE TEXAS AGKICULTURAL ANT. 



PBOF. COOK TELLS US SOME WONDERFUL THINGS 

 ABOUT ANTS AS WELL AS BEES. 



I HAVE received from Mr. W. D. Allen, of Koose, 

 Texas, a fertile (or wingless) queen of these strange 

 ants [Pogouornyrmex harhatus). He requests a re- 

 port through Gleanings, and desires especially to 

 know whether there is more than one queen in a 

 colony, and whether there is any way to extermi- 

 nate these rivals in agriculture. As they allow no 

 vegetation within a radius of six or eight feet of 

 the door to their nests, the damage they do is by 

 no means insignificant. I am specially glad to re- 

 ceive this queen ant, as we have none of this 

 species in our collection. I shall be very grateful if 

 Mr. Allen can send me more queens— both winged 



and wingless— males, and workers— both large and 

 small. 



I am also glad to present to the readers of 

 Gleanings something of the life and habits of 

 these interesting insects, especially as they are of 

 peculiar interest to bee-keepers, as there is much 

 in common in the life economy of ants and bees; 

 and the student of either will the better understand 

 his subject if he study the other. These ants (see 

 cut) are reddish brown in color. The queens are a 

 little more than half an inch 

 long. The males — drones — are 

 half an inch long, and the work- 

 ers, of which there are two sizes, 

 are respectively one and two- 

 eighths of an inch shorter than 

 the males. The young queens- 

 virgins— and males have wings, 

 while the workers and lading 

 queens are wingless. Like bum- 

 ble-bees they live in underground 

 nests; though these ants tunnel into the earth for 

 several feet, and have quite extensive galleries. 

 They may have a hill or mound above their tunnels, 

 or they may have no hill. The entrance to the tun- 

 nels is usuallyiby one 'opening; but there maybe 

 two, three, or four, all near together. They take 

 their name, "agricultural ant," from the fact that 

 they keep a circle, with a diameter of from six to 

 sixteen feet, about,the entrance to their nest, en- 

 tirely free from all kinds of plants; and radiating 

 paths, also'cleaned of vegetation, stretch for many 

 feet in Tevery direction from the central circle. 

 These paths are five or six inches wide at their in- 

 ner end, and become more narrow as they extend. 

 They are] alsoj husbandmen, in that they garner 

 into their nests seeds during summer, on which 

 they feed at all seasons. Their paths are highways 

 over which they bear] the heavy seeds. To show 

 how brainy they are, it is reported that if, from 

 heavy rains, their granaries are flooded, the seeds 

 are carried out to dry; and, when dry, are carried 

 back. Totshowjtheir patriotism, it is reported that, 

 in case of storms, they will plug the eniranqe with 

 their bodies, and thus die for their kindred and 

 home. Therelis a certain kind of grass—" ant rice," 

 which is nearly always found about the cleared 

 circles of these insect agriculturists. It is believed 

 that the;ants!sow the seeds purposely to raise their 

 favorite forage 'crop; while some argue that the 

 presence of the ant rice is accidental, coming from 

 seed carelessly left.by the ants. There is some rea- 

 son to believe that there is purpose in the seed- 

 sowing. So we see these Texan ants are veritable 

 agriculturists, and no mean rivals of man. The 

 young queens— virgins— have wings. When the 

 season for mating comes— in June— the males and 

 females fly forth and mate. It is reported that they 

 mate on the ground (?). The males die at once, and 

 the now.; impregnated queen flies ofl', and alone 

 commenceslto dig.'a home. So, like the queen bum- 

 ble-bee, the queen-ant, at first, has to do all the 

 labor. The queen ant, finding her wings in the way, 

 bites them off. The hard command, "If thy hand 

 offend thee," is obeyed by these insects. Who shall 

 say thatjinsects are destitute either of intellect or 

 morals ? 



All the ants which are produced at first are work- 

 ers, and those produced while the queen is not only 

 chief, but the only " cook and bottle-washer," are 

 the small workers. Thus, as with bees, a stinted 



