THE ANT-LION 269 



"Oh, no. The hungry watcher at the bottom of 

 the funnel will have something to say on that subject. 

 He intends to make a good dinner on the ant. If 

 things had followed their customary course and the 

 imprudent victim, caught in the trap, had continued 

 to slide down until within reach of the nippers, these 

 would have seized their prey without further for- 

 mality ; but since the game seems about to escape, it 

 is the huntsman's part to employ the manoeuvres re- 

 served for difficult cases. 



' ' The ant-lion 's head is flat and somewhat shovel- 

 shaped. The insect plunges it into the sand and 

 then, with a sudden movement of the neck, throws the 

 shovelful up into the air so that it will come down 

 again on the ant. Other shovelfuls follow in quick 

 succession, better and better directed, and fall back 

 in a hail-storm on the now nearly exhausted ant. 



"Against this shower of sand resistance is impos- 

 sible when one stands on a treacherous footing that 

 gives way at each attempt to escape. The poor vic- 

 tim is swept away and rolls to the bottom of the 

 funnel. Instantly the nippers seize their prey, and 

 all is over. The huntsman goes to his dinner, not 

 gnawing the fruit of his patient skill, since it is too 

 tough for that, but sucking the juice like the refined 

 epicure he is. 



"When there is nothing left of the ant but a dry 

 husk, the ant-lion loads it on to his head and with 

 an upward toss throws it out of the funnel, in order 

 not to defile his place of ambush with a useless 

 corpse which might arouse the distrust of passers-by. 



