SIR J. LUBBOCK ON AHTS, BEES, AKD WASPS. 173 



It seems to me therefore to be established by these experiments 

 that the recognition of ants is not personal and individual ; that 

 their harmony is not due to the fact that each ant is individually 

 acquainted with every other member of the community. 



At the same time, the fact that they recognize their friends 

 even when intoxicated, and that they know the young born in their 

 own nest even when they have been brought out of the chrysalis by 

 strangers, seems to indicate that the recognition is not effected 

 by means of any sign or password. 



Mr. McCook states that ants more or less soaked in water 

 are no longer recognized by their friends, but, on the contrary, 

 are attacked. Describing the following observation, he says*:— 

 (l I was accidentally set upon the track of an interesting discovery. 

 An ant fell into a box containing water placed at the foot of a 

 tree. She remained in the liquid several moments and crept out. 

 Immediately she was seized in a hostile manner, first by one, then 

 another, then by a third : the two antennse and one leg were 

 thus held. A fourth ant assaulted the middle thorax and petiole. 

 The poor little bather was thus dragged helplessly to and fro for 

 a long time, and was evidently ordained to death. Presently I 

 took up the struggling heap. Two of the assailants kept their 

 hold ; one finally dropped, the other I could not tear loose, and 

 so put the pair back upon the tree, leaving the doomed immer- 

 sionist to her hard fate." 



After repeating one or two other similar observations, he 

 adds f:— " The conclusion, therefore, seems warranted that the 

 peculiar odour or condition by which the ants recognize each 

 other was temporarily destroyed by the bath, and the individuals 

 thus ' tainted ' were held to be intruders, alien and enemy. This 

 conclusion is certainly unfavourable to the theory that any thing 

 like an intelligent social sentiment exists among the ants. The 

 recognition of their fellows is reduced to a mere matter of phy- 

 sical sensation or ' smell.' " 



This conclusion does not, I confess, seem to me to be conclusively 

 established. 



Workers breeding. 

 In my last paper I brought forward some strong evidence 

 tending to show that when workers laid eggs they always pro- 

 duced males. This is, however, a physiological fact of so much 



* • Mound-making Ants of the Alleghanies,' p. 280, 

 t Ibid. p. 281. 



