190 INSECTS. 



(so-called) " catalogues"* by this gentleman, published 

 by the British Museum, and proceed upon his studies 

 with these in hand. 



Heterogyna, then, consists of the Social Ants, For- 

 micidce, now divided into Formicidce, Poneridce, and 

 Myrmecidce, and of the Solitary Ants, Miitillidce. 



The social ants are distinguished from the solitary and 

 from all other hymenopterous insects by a peculiar deve- 

 lopment of the first, or first and second joints of the 

 abdomen. The first joint, which forms the stalk of the 

 abdomen, grows out behind into a scale or raised 

 " node," in the Formicida3 and the Poneridse (fig. 53, 

 p. 188); in the Myrmecidse (fig. 54, p. 189), the same 

 happens with both the first and second joints. 



The social ants, like the social wasps and bees, con- 

 sist of males, females, and workers, or imperfect females, 

 the latter being always wingless among the ants, while 

 among the bees and wasps they, like the perfect insects, 

 possess permanent wings. The female of the social 

 ants, winged like other insects at her emergence from 

 the pupa state, and like them, rejoicing for a time in 

 the sunshine and fresh air, to exercise them, retains 

 her wings only until she is ready to enter upon the 

 business of her life, laying the eggs which are to fill 

 the nests preparing for them by the workers. She then 

 prepares herself for her underground labours by volun- 

 tarily depriving herself of these appendages. 



It would require more than the bulk of this entire 

 volume to repeat the wonders recorded of the tribe of 

 social ants. The very bees yield to them in the variety 



* British Bees, and British Fossorial Hymenoptera. 



