THE ANIMALS OF THE FOREST. in 



The latter live in well-built nests in the ground, as 

 well protected against floods and enemies as if the 

 ants formed great nations with lines of dams and 

 fortresses. But there are other species found on 

 the trees, all having their peculiar manners and 

 customs, which should be almost as interesting 

 to the student as those of the races of mankind. 

 A small black ant which lives in the Barbados 

 cherry (Malpighia punicifolia) from the egg case of 

 a Mantis makes a little nest the size of a walnut. 

 From this home it wanders over the bush, ap- 

 parently looking after flocks of scale insects which 

 it has carried to pasture on the leaves when very 

 young or in the egg. The scale insect sucks the 

 juices from the leaf, and the ants crowd round 

 seemingly to get a portion of what exudes, or else 

 to take it from the parasite after some change has 

 been effected. 



Some trees provide homes for these little crea- 

 tures, evidently inviting them to inhabit their 

 barracks, provided they keep off noxious creatures 

 that would eat their leaves or flowers. A species 

 of Melastomacese does this in the swollen petioles 

 of its leaves, an acacia in its thorns, another shrub 

 in a swollen node of its branches, and an orchid 

 (Diacrium bicornutum) in its pseudo-bulbs. All 

 these are so beautifully contrived that we can 



