■y 



80 ANIMAL INTELLIGENCE. 



closer examination it appeared that thougli the great mass of 

 seed-bearers were travelling towards the upper nest, some few 

 were going in the opposite direction and making for the lower. 

 Besides this, at intervals, combats might be seen taking place, 

 one ant seizing the free end of a seed carried by another, and 

 endeavouring to wrench it away, and then frequently, as neither 

 would let go, the stronger ant would drag seed and opponent 

 towards its nest. At times other ants would interfere and seize 

 one of the combatants and endeavour to drag it away, this often 

 resulting in terrible mutilations, and especially in the loss of the 

 abdomen, which would be torn off while the jaws of the victim 

 retained their indomitable bull-dog grip upon the seed. Then 

 the victor might be seen dragging away his prize, while its ad- 

 versary, though now little more than a head and legs, offered a 

 vigorous though of course ineffectual resistance. I frequently 

 observed that the ants during these conflicts would endeavour 

 to seize one another's antennae,. and that if this were effected, 

 the ant thus assaulted would instantly release his hold, whether 

 of seed or adversary, and appear utterly discomfited. No doubt 

 the antennae are their most sensitive parts, and injuries inflicted 

 on these organs cause the greatest pain. 



It was not until I had watched this scene for some days that 

 I apprehended its true meaning, and discovered that the ants of 

 the upper nest were robbing the granaries of the lower, while 

 the latter tried to recover the stolen seeds both by fighting 

 for them and by stealing seeds in their turn from the nest 

 of their oppressors. The thieves, however, were evidently 

 the stronger, and streams of ants laden with seeds arrived 

 safely at the upper nest, while close observation showed that 

 very few seeds were successfully carried on the reverse journey 

 into the lower and plundered nest. 



Thus when I fixed my attention on one of these robbed ants 

 siu-reptitiously making its exit with the seed from the thieves' 

 nest, and having overcome the opposition and dangers met with 

 on its way, reaching, after a journey which took six minutes to 

 accomplish, the entrance to its own home, I saw that it was 

 violently deprived of its burden by a guard of ants stationed there 

 apparently for the purpose, one of whom instantly started off 

 and carried the seed all the way back again to the upper nest. 



This I saw repeated several times. 



After March 4 I never saw any acts of hostility between 

 these nests, though the robbed nest was not abandoned. In 

 another case of the same kind, however, where the struggle 

 lasted thirty-one days, the robbed nest was at length completely 



