The Anatomy of Ants. By Sir John LubhocJc, Bart. 133 
de T. caespitum dune variete de grande taille a un decimetre d’un 
des nids d’une colonie de Pheidole pallidula. En un clin d’oeil 
l’alarme fut repandue, et des centaines de Pheidole se jeterent au- 
devant de l’ennemi.” 
The species of Camponohis, when alarmed, “ non seulement se 
frappent vivementet a coups repetes les uns les autres, mais en 
meme temps ils frappent le sol deux ou trois fois de suite avec leur 
abdomen, et repetent cet acte a de courts intervalles, ce qui produit 
un bruit tres marque qu’on entend surtout hien lorsque le nid est 
dans un tronc d’arbre.” * 
It would even seem that some species understand the signs of 
others. Thus F. sangminea, he says,t is able to seize “ l’instant 
ou les Pratensis se communiquent le signal de la deroute, et elles 
savent s’apprendre cette decouverte les unes aux autres avec une 
rapidite incroyable. Au moment meme ou l’on voit les Pratensis se 
jeter les unes contre les autres en se frappant de quelques coups 
rapides, puis cesser toutes resistance et s’enfuir en masse, on voit 
aussi les Sanguinea se jeter tout-a-coup au milieu d’elles sans la 
petite retinue, mordant a droite et a gauche comme des Polyergus, 
et arrachant des cocons de toutes les Pratensis qui en portent.” 
I am indebted to Mr. Francis Galtonfor the following quotation 
from Col. Long’s recent work on Central Africa : f — “ I observed,” 
he says, “ the manner of catching them ” (the ants, for food), “ as 
here pictured ” (he gives a figure). “ Seated round an ant-hole were 
two very pretty maidens, who with sticks beat upon an inverted 
gourd, ‘ bourmah,’ in cadenced time to a not unmusical song, that 
seduced from its hole the unwary ant, who, approaching the orifice, 
was quickly seized.” (The species of ant is not mentioned.) 
Dr. Landois, in his excellent little work on the voice of Animals, § 
has called attention to a structure in ants which, so far as I am 
aware, had not previously been observed, and which he considers to 
be an organ for the production of sound. Kirby and Spence were, 
I believe, the first to notice that an allied Hymenopterous insect, 
Mutilla Eurojooea, has the power of making a sibilant, chirping 
sound, but they did not ascertain how this was effected. Goureau 
subsequently called attention to the same fact, and attributed it to 
friction of the base of the third segment of the abdomen against 
the second. Westwood, H on the other hand, thought the sound 
was produced “ by the action of the large collar against the front 
of the mesothorax.” Darwin, in his ‘ Descent of Man,’ adopts the 
same view. “ I find,” he says,** “ that these surfaces (i. e. the over- 
* Loc. cit., p. 355. f Loc. cit., p. 359. 
J ‘Central Africa,’ by Col. C. C. Long, p. 274. 
§ ‘ Thierstimmen,’ von Dr. H. Landois, Frieburg, 1874. 
|| ‘Ann. de la Soc. Ent. de France,’ 1837. 
If ‘ Modern Class of Insects,’ vol. ii. 
** ‘Descent of Man,’ vol. i. p. 366. 
