HUNTING AND FISHING OF ANIMALS 1571 



who furtively approaches the imprudent singers. 

 With a sudden stroke of his tail he strikes the reeds 

 and throws into the water one or more of the hungry 

 young ones, who are then at his mercy. 



The animals who feed on species living in societies 

 either seize on their prey when isolated or when all 

 the members of the colony are united in their city. A 

 search for the nest is necessary in the case of creatures 

 who are very small in comparison with the hunter, as 

 in the case of ants and the ant-eater. But the ant- 

 eater possesses a very long and sticky tongue, which 

 renders the capture of these insects extremely easy; 

 when he finds a frequented passage it is enough to 

 stretch out his tongue; all the ants come of their own 

 accord and place themselves on it, and when it is 

 sufficiently charged he withdraws it and devours 

 them. The African Orycteropus, who is also a great 

 eater of ants and especially of termites, is equally 

 aided by a very developed tongue; but he has less 

 patience than the ant-eater, and he adds to this re- 

 source other proceedings which render the hunt more 

 fruitful and enable him to obtain a very large num- 

 ber of insects at one time. Thanks to his keenness of 

 scent he soon discovers an ant-path bearing the spe- 

 cial and characteristic odor which these Hymenop- 

 tera leave behind them, and he follows the track 

 which leads to their nest. On arriving there, with- 

 out troubling himself about the scattered insects that 

 prowl in the neighborhood, he sets himself to pene- 

 trate into the midst of the dwelling, and with his 

 strong claws hollows out a passage which enables him 

 to gain access. On the way he pierces walls, breaks 



