<J4 ON THE HABITS OF ANTS. [LECT. 



has the habit of feigning death. This species, how- 

 ever, does not roll itself up, but merely applies its 

 legs and antennae closely to the body. 



Formica rufa, the common horse ant, attacks in 

 serried masses, seldom sending out detachments, while 

 single ants scarcely ever make individual attacks. They 

 rarely pursue a flying foe, but give no quarter, killing 

 as many enemies as possible, and never hesitating, with 

 this object, to sacrifice themselves for the common good. 

 Formica sanguinea, on the contrary, at least in 

 their slave- making expeditions, attempt rather to terrify 

 than to kill. Indeed, when they are invading a nest, they 

 do not attack the flying inhabitants, unless the latter 

 are attempting to carry off pupae, in which case they 

 are forced to abandon these. When fighting, they 

 attempt to crush their enemies with their mandibles. 



Formica exsecta is a delicate, but very active species. 

 They also advance in serried masses, but in close 

 quarters they bite right and left, dancing about to 

 avoid being bitten themselves. When fighting with 

 larger species, they spring on to their backs, and then 

 seize them by the neck or by an antenna. They also 

 have the instinct of combining in small parties, three 

 or four seizing an enemy at once, and then pulling 

 different ways, so that she on her part cannot get at 

 aoy one of her foes. One of them then jumps on 

 her back and cuts, or rather saws off, her head. In 

 battles between this ant and the much larger F. pra- 

 tensis, many of the latter may be seen, each with a 

 little F. exsecta on her back, sawing off her head from 

 behind. 



One might, at first sight, be disposed to consider 



