368 ME. G. D. HATILAJSTD Olf TERMITES. 



food and build the nest, but also nurse the youug, and may be 

 seen carrying the eggs and young larvae to places of greater 

 safety. In some species they certainly take care of the queens. 

 I have spirit-specimens of T. hospitalis and T. malayanus in which 

 many of them are biting the abdomen of the queen. I have no 

 doubt this is to stimulate her to move and escape from danger. 

 The curious irregular contractions seen in the queen's abdomen 

 when alive I attribute also to endeavours to escape ; for I have 

 reason to believe that they do not occur when the queen is at 

 rest, and not iu normal egg-laying, lu some species the workers 

 will bite an intruder, but more often they are only too anxious 

 to escape. 



The structure and j)Osition of termites' nests are very various. 

 They agree in haviug the outer part closed so as to exclude their 

 great enemies the ants, the entrances are generally few and well 

 protected. There are, however, some exceptions to this rule, 

 of which the most remarkable is the nest of T. latericius, which 

 has two or three vertical shafts, an inch or two in diameter and 

 about three feet deep, opening on the surface of the ground. 

 T. Jiospitalis also has one or more large openings at the summit 

 of the nest. Several species of the group to which T. lacessitus 

 belongs, and which build round nests on the branches of shrubs, 

 may also have several exposed openings into the nests. 



The different grou]is of the genus Termes build nests of 

 different characters ; the most remarkable that I have seen are 

 those of the fungus-growers, so well described by Smeathman in 

 the case of T. lelUcosus. The nests of the American fungus- 

 growers seem unfortunately never to have been described. It 

 was noticed by Smeathmanthat iu some cases the nests of nearly 

 allied species were more easily distinguished than the insects 

 which built them. This is especially true of the species allied to 

 T. nemorosus, which builds turret-nests closely like the turret- 

 nests described by Smeathman. On the other hand, the appear- 

 ance and shape of the nests are much modified by conditions ; thus 

 the mound-builders can live without a mound in cultivated ground, 

 where mounds are not permitted. In the case of T. malayanus 

 I have found such nests partially deserted from having become 

 water-logged. 



All the species whose soldiers have a distinctly saddle-shaped 

 pronotum seem to use proctodeal discharges in the building of 

 their nests. The fungus-growers, on the other hand, do not do 



