iv.] LONGEVITY OF ANTS. 133 



constant readiness, and once or twice in the train, when 

 the officials came for tickets, and I was compelled to 

 hurry her back into the bottle in which she lived, she 

 stung me slightly I think, however, entirely from fright. 

 Gradually she became quite used to me, and when I took 

 her on my hand apparently expected to be fed. She 

 even allowed me to stroke her without any appearance 

 of fear, and for some months I never saw her sting. 



When the cold weather came on, she fell in a drowsy 

 state, and I began to hope she would hibernate and 

 survive the winter. I kept her in a dark place, but 

 watched her carefully, and fed her if ever she seemed at 

 all restless. She came out occasionally, and seemed as 

 well as usual till near the end of February, when one day 

 I observed she had nearly lost the use of her antennae, 

 though the rest of the body was as usual. She would 

 take no food. Next day I tried again to feed her ; 

 but the head seemed dead, though she could still move 

 her legs, wings, and abdomen. The following day I 

 offered her food for the last time ; but both head and 

 thorax were dead or paralysed ; she could but wag her 

 tail ; a last token, as I could almost fancy, of gratitude 

 and affection. As far as I could judge, her death was 

 quite painless, and she now occupies a place in the 

 British Museum. 



As already mentioned, there are certain species of 

 ants in which there are two distinct kinds of workers, 

 doubtless with different functions. But even when all 

 the workers are of one form, it is possible that there is 

 some division of labor. Thus in the autumn of 1875, 

 I noticed an ant belonging to one of my nests of 

 F. fusca, out feeding alone. The next day the same 



