200 INSECTA. 



furniture of all kinds, and the planks, timbers, &c. &c. which 

 form parts of houses. There they excavate galleries, which form so 

 many roads, all leading to the centre of their domicil, and these bodies 

 thus mined, and retaining nothing but a superficial bark or covering, 

 soon crumble into dust (a). If compelled by any insurmountable ob- 

 stacle to leave their dwellings, they construct tubes or ways which 

 still keep them from sight. The nests or domicils of several species 

 are exterior, but have no visible opening. Sometimes they are raised 

 above the surface of the ground, in the form of pyramids or turrets, 

 occasionally surmounted with a capital or very solid roof, which by their 

 height and number, resemble a little village. Sometimes they form 

 a large globular mass on the branches of trees. Another sort of indi- 

 viduals, the neuters, also called soldiers, and which Fabricius erro- 

 neously considers as nymphs, defend the domicil. They are distin- 

 guished by their stouter and more elongated head, the mandibles of 

 which are also longer, nari'ower, and considerably crossed. They are 

 much less numerous than the others, and remain near the surface of 

 the habitation, are the first that present themselves in case of an at- 

 tack, and pinch with considerable strength. It is also said that they 

 force the labourers to work. The seminymphs have rudiments of 

 wings, and in other respects resemble the larvee. 



Having become perfect Insects, the Termites leave their original 

 retreat, and fly off at evening or during the night in incalcvdable 

 numbers. At sun-rise they lose their wings, which are dried up, fall 

 to the ground, and are mostly devoured by Birds, Lizards, and the 

 rest of their enemies. According to Smeathmann, the larvae seize 

 upon all the couples they can find, and shut them up in a large cell, 

 a sort of nuptial prison, where they supply them with nourishment. 

 I have reason to believe, however, that their coitus, like that of the 

 Ant, takes place in the air, or beyond the precincts of their habitation, 

 and that the females alone occupy the attention of the larvae, with a 

 view to the formation of a new colony. The abdomen of the female 

 acquires an astonishing size, from the innumerable quantity of ova 

 contained in it. The nuptial chamber is placed in the centre of the 

 dwelling, and round it, symmetrically arranged, are the cells which 

 contain the eggs and provisions. 



The larvae of certain Termites called voyageurs or travellers, are 

 furnished with eyes, and appear to differ somewhat in their habits 

 from the others, and in this respect to approximate more closely to 

 our ants. * 



The Negroes and Hottentots consider these Insects as a great de- 

 licacy. They are destroyed with quick-lime, or more readily with 

 arsenic, which is thrown into their habitations. 



The two following species, found in the south of France, live in the 

 interior of various trees. 



T. lucifugum Ross., Faun. Etrusc, Mant. II, v, k. Glossy- 

 black ; wings brownish, somcAvhat diaphanous, with the rib more 



CC?* («) We saw a beautiful edifice in the Isle of France that was abandoned within 

 a few months after it was completed, on this account. The whole building was a 

 mere shell. — Enc. Ed. 



