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ENTOMOLOGY 



captives receive every care, and at length, as imagines, serve their mas- 

 ters as faithfully as they would serve their own species. In the Alle- 

 ghanies, according to McCook, colonies of F.fusca occur where there are 

 no "red ants" (F. sanguined), but are hard to find where the enslaving 

 species occurs. 



Although F. sanguined can exist very well without slaves, Polyergus 

 rufescens, of Europe, is notoriously dependent upon their services, it 

 being doubtful whether it is capable of feeding itself. This species is 

 powerful as a warrior, but its mandibles are of little use, except to pierce 

 the head of an adversary. Strongylonotus is still more helpless, while 

 Aner gates (also of Europe) is said to depend absolutely upon its slaves. 



Polyergus lucidus occurs in the Alleghanies, where the colonies of this 

 species, according to McCook, contain large numbers of the workers of 

 Formica schaufussi. The masters are good fighters but do no other 

 work, and have not been seen to feed themselves, though they may often 

 be seen feeding from the mouths of their slaves. 



Honey Ants. Among ants in general, the workers that stay in the 



PIG. 289. ;Honey ants, Myrmecocystus melliger, clinging to the roof of their chamber. 

 About natural size. After McCooK. 



nest receive food from the mouths of the foragers a custom which has 

 led to the extraordinary conditions found in the " honey ants," in which 

 certain of the workers sacrifice their own activity in order to act as living 

 reservoirs of food (repletes) for the benefit of the other members of the 

 colony. This remarkable habit has arisen independently, in different 

 genera of ants, in North America, Australia and South Africa, as Lub- 

 bock observes. 



