140 



Journal New York Entomological Societv. [Vol. xvi. 



their body and legs, or stand motionless with the anterior part of the 

 body elevated and the fore pair of legs raised from the floor, turned 

 forward and strongly flexed at their femorotibial joints. When a 

 beetle in this position happens to be touched by the antennae of a 

 passing ant, it begins to wave its fore legs as if to attract attention. 

 The ant stops, begins to lick the beetle or seizes it with her jaws. 

 The body of the latter being very hard and smooth slips from her 



grasp but the ant redoubles her 

 efforts. She either seizes it by one 

 of its legs, since the beetle does 

 not feign death and withdraw its ap- 

 pendages, but allows itself to be 

 carried about the nest, or she stops, 

 seizes it with her fore feet and, hold- 

 ing it in a vertical position, pro- 

 ceeds to lick its head in a very 

 quick and effusive manner. For 

 some time the beetle keeps its head 

 withdrawn into its thorax, after the 

 Histerid fashion, till the ant stops 

 abruptly, protrudes her tongue and 

 regurgitates a drop of food on its 

 face. Then the beetle protrudes 

 its head, opens its mouth, works its jaws and rapidly absorbs the 

 liquid which sometimes floods the whole cavity in the fore part of the 

 thorax. Thereupon the ant again falls to licking the beetle as if to 

 wipe its face free from the moisture and either leaves the creature to 

 its own devices or regurgitates another drop. Again and again the 

 licking and feeding may alternate as if the ant were fascinated with 

 her pet and could not feed and fondle it enough. This performance 

 is, in fact, so frequently repeated that I could nearly always observe 

 it whenever I uncovered the nest. I have rarely witnessed a more 

 comical sight than the behavior of these slender, black ants while 

 they are holding the chunky, little, red urchins in their jaws and pour- 

 ing liquid into them as if they were so many casks. Comical, too, is 

 the behavior of the beetle while it is waiting to be noticed, with its 

 head and fore legs elevated. At such times it assumes a ridiculous, 

 cocky air and often, instead of receiving the caress and food which 

 it is expecting, it is inadvertently knocked over onto its flat back by 



Fig. i. Hetcerius brunneipennis 



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