PSYCHE 
VOL. XLIV DECEMBER, 1937 No. 4 
NOTES ON THE HABITS OF STRUMIGENYS 
By William Steel Creighton 
Dept, of Biology, College of the City of New York 
The singular cephalic characteristics which mark the ants 
of the genus Strumigenys have given rise to a number of 
postulates concerning the habits of these strange insects. 
Such postulates have, for the most part, remained specu- 
lative. This result is not surprising if one considers the 
obscurity which surrounds these forms. Although widely 
distributed and not excessively rare in some areas Strumi- 
genys is one of the least conspicuous genera in our ant fauna. 
This will not, however, entirely account for the dearth of 
ecological data concerning the group. Published records 
attest that nearly every American myrmecologist has taken 
specimens of Strumigenys in the field. The opportunity for 
habit studies has been allowed to pass and the specimens 
have given rise to little more than an additional locality 
record. If it were not for the abundant evidence to the con- 
trary one might almost believe that myrmecologists suffer 
from a distressing sort of alcoholism which impells them to 
pop rare specimens into that fluid as soon as these are un- 
earthed. This might have been the fate of the colony de- 
scribed in this paper had it not been accidentally divided into 
two groups on exposure. The first of these went into alcohol 
at once but the second was not noticed until the initial ac- 
quisitive frenzy had passed. It was thereupon placed in a 
live-bottle where it survived a three day trip home. The 
ensuing notes are based upon observations made on this 
fragment of the original colony. 
