12b The Irish Naturalist. November, 



(r— 5. Westwoodi) never constructs its own nest, but resides 

 constantly with species of Formicidae." 



The observations here recorded should therefore be of 

 interest as proving conclusively, that in Ireland at any rate, 

 Stenamma Westwoodi makes its own home, founds its 

 colonies and raises its young quite independently of any 

 other species. 



On the 20th of May last I discovered tw^o colonies of a 

 small ant, each under a large fiat stone in Mount Garret 

 Wood near New Ross, Co. Wexford. The first consisted of 

 about a dozen workers walking on the underside of the 

 stone which rested on a loose layer of dead twigs and leaves. 

 The second was a small nest in which about twenty workers 

 and some larvae were seen. Specimens were sent to Mr. 

 A. W. Stelfox of the National Museum, Dublin, who at 

 once recognized it as Stenamma Westwoodi and its identity 

 was subsequently verified by Mr. Donisthorpe. 



Since then, in September, 1921, I took a wwker and 

 one male on the ground close to a nest of Formica fusca 

 and another worker in moss shakings in the wood at Camlin, 

 two miles south of New Ross. In the same m^onth, in 

 Killoughrim Forest, Co. Wexford, I discovered one nest 

 with numerous workers and larvae, and another with a 

 few workers only. All these habitats are old oak M^oods 

 with a plentiful undergrowth of holly and brambles. 



On September 17th Mr. Stelfox and I visited Mount 

 Garret Wood together and in the space of a few^ hours 

 examined over forty nests, most of which contained larvae, 

 pupae, workers and one or more females (i.e., " queens 

 Males, varying in numbers from one to eight were also 

 present in some nests. All the females seen were dealated, 

 that is, having been fertilized, they had got rid of their 

 wings. The number of adults in each nest varied between 

 twenty and one hundred. 



A few colonies, which may be regarded as abnormal, 

 were also found, one, for instance, consisting of five males 

 and one worker, another of one male and two workers ; 

 there were no larvae in either of these, and a third had six 

 dealated females, two workers and some larvae. 



Every nest we saw was situated under a stone, so 

 tightly embedded as to preclude light and moisture ; 



