Ants 



of her first formed eggs in her mouth, and on this medium 

 the fungus flourishes exceedingly. 



As the young ants develop, the queen must needs tend 

 her fungus garden as well as her offspring, for the fungus 

 is a necessary food for the young ants. From time to 

 time the queen tears off a little of the fungus growth in 

 her mouth and holds it to the tip of her body. At the 

 same time she gives forth a small drop of brownish liquid, 

 which is rapidly absorbed by the fungus. Then she 

 inserts the little tuft amongst the main fungus growth 

 and puts it into place with her fore-feet. This operation 

 is repeated once or twice an hour, and the fungus thrives 

 on its manuring. Sometimes a queen will find herself 

 without a fungus garden, then another queen will present 

 her with sufficient of the growth to start horticultural 

 operations, to her evident delight. 



The first grubs to hatch do not feed on the fungus, as 

 might be expected, but are fed by their mother on her 

 own eggs. As soon as they are grown into fully fledged 

 workers they enlarge the nest by making other chambers ; 

 they bring pieces of leaves, cut them into minute wads 

 and insert them in the fungus garden. The manuring of 

 the garden by the queen ceases, and she degenerates into 

 a sluggish egg-laying machine. 



From the fungus-growing to the harvesting-ants is not 

 a very far cry. Harvesters are found in practically all the 

 warmer parts of the earth, and wherever they live their 

 habits are very similar. They usually scour the country 

 in droves, gathering seeds of all sorts as they go and 

 returning with them to their underground nests, where 

 they are stored in special chambers or granaries, to be 

 used as food for the young and for themselves. More 

 extraordinary than their proven habits are the stories that 

 have been woven round their doings. They are said to 

 bite off the young growing points from the seeds in order 

 to prevent them from germinating. So far from this being 

 the truth, the stored seeds often germinate within the 



