CONTENTS. 
Page. 
Introduction 9 
General considerations : 10 
History and distribution 11 
Introduction into Louisiana 12 
Present distribution in the Southern States 14 
Occurrence and distribution in California 15 
Area of ultimate infestation 16 
Common name 18 
Means of dispersion 19 
Natural spread 19 
Flight 19 
Dispersion by streams 20 
Artificial dissemination 20 
Economic importance 22 
Systematic position 26 
Description of the spec^ a 27 
Resemblance to other ants 30 
Methods of study 32 
Establishing colonies for study '. 36 
Life history 38 
The egg 38 
Period of incubation 39 
The larva 40 
Duration of the larval stage 41 
The pupa 42 
The worker pupa 42 
The male pupa 43 
The queen pupa 44 
The callow or teneral stage 45 
Time required for complete development 45 
The adults 46 
The worker 46 
Length of life 47 
The male 47 
The queen 48 
The virgin queen 48 
The dealated, or fertile, queen 49 
The colony as a whole 51 
Seasonal history 51 
Winter colonies 51 
Summer colonies 52 
Compound colonies or communities 54 
5 
