FORMICA. 311 



he saw the female resting in a small hole in the earth, with six 

 worker cocoons and two full-grown larvae 42 . 



Janet, in 1904, placed a fusca female, which had got rid of her 

 wings on July 8th, in an observation nest, and in a few days 

 a fairly large packet of eggs was laid, which soon hatched. On 

 July 28th the first larva spun its cocoon, and on August 22nd the 

 first callow made its appearance 41 . 



On September 14th, 1910, I took five fusca females from a 

 colony, nesting under the bark of a tree stump in a bog at Balrath, 

 Co. Meath, which contained very many females. On September 

 17th, when I reached home, they were placed in a plaster nest, 

 where they all laid eggs, which they carried about, but which all 

 eventually disappeared. Three of these females were taken away 

 for other experiments, and the remaining two lived together all 

 through 1911. January 31st, 1912, one of them laid a few eggs, 

 which she held in her mandibles February 6th both females 

 holding bunches of eggs : they were quite friendly and sometimes 

 one alone carried all the eggs February 27th eight larvae present, 

 three of which pupated on March 2nd, the number increasing to 

 seven by the llth March 24th a fresh batch of eggs laid April 1st 

 the first fusca callow hatched, carried about by one of the females 

 April 3rd a second callow appeared April 4th another present, 

 but it was dead April 8th a third callow hatched, assisted by the 

 other two April 7th more eggs had been laid, carried about by 

 the tiny workers May 14th small bunch of larvae present carried 

 by the workers May 19th a fourth callow present. By June 6th 

 one of the females had a swollen gaster, but the other, which had 

 been ailing for some time and was of normal size, was dragged 

 by an antenna by one of the workers, and as ants do not drag 

 another by the antennae when their motives are friendly, this 

 would seem to be a hostile act : at any rate this female was dead 

 on June 7th, and put in the outside chamber 57 . The female with 

 the swollen gaster and the four little workers lived together for 

 some time, more eggs were laid, but no further brood was reared. 

 One of the four workers died on November 26th, 1912, two more on 

 January 27th, 1913, and the fourth on February 4th, 1913, the 

 queen dying on March 4th, 1913. 



On April 25th, 1913, I brought home a number of fusca females 

 taken in nests at Tenby, June 9th microgynes from Lundy, and 

 July 29th some rufibarbis queens taken in a nest at Weybridge, all 

 of which were placed in the same small plaster nest. January 1st, 

 1914, one fusca female, one microgyne, and one rufibarbis female 

 were introduced into a small " Crawley-Lubbock " earth nest 

 April 2nd eggs present, each female carrying them about in turn 

 May 1st small larvae present, carried equally by the large fusca, 

 and the rufibarbis females (from this time forward the microgyne 

 paid no further attention to the brood) May 25th two cocoons 



