COMMUNICATING AND OTHER ANTS 77 



the new nest may be established six, eight or ten feet 

 away. They do not necessarily migrate in one body all 

 at one time, but those which carry the larvae to the new 

 nest may continue to return to the old nest again and 

 again to convey another burden. 



One day I watched them migrating in a long file 

 and entering the new nest by four small apertures. 

 I sealed up with stones these apertures in order to 

 observe what the ants would do with their precious 

 larvae. After a short period of great excitement and 

 commotion, the workers carrying larvae turned away 

 from the closed doors, retraced their steps for a short 

 distance towards the old nest, and then branched off 

 to one side in the direction of a small heap of withered 

 grass. Beneath this grass they deposited their larvae, 

 in order presumably that they might not become 

 injured by exposure. They then returned to help in 

 the removal of the obstruction. Now as each ant 

 turned away from the barred door to conceal its larvae, 

 it frequently passed and appeared to communicate 

 with other ants bearing larvae to the new nest. Yet it 

 never appeared to be able to convey the information 

 to them that the opening of the nest was barred and 

 that the larvae should be stored beneath the heap of 

 grass. Each ant had to proceed right up to the 

 obstruction and investigate for itself the unusual state 

 of affairs before it could deposit its burden and help in 

 the task of demolition. 



On another occasion, during a migration of the same 

 species, I killed a number of the migrants close to the 

 entrance of the nest into which the ants were carrying 

 their larvae. This filled the ants with intense alarm ; 

 there was now no attempt to hide the pupae until the 



