1974] Moglich & Holldobler — Nest Moving of Ants 
223 
pointed forward, in fact this seems to be the exception and has been 
specifically observed only in Crematogaster (see Wilson 1971). 
Generally, however, the stereotyped adult transport behavior of 
many myrmicine species, which has been repeatedly described since 
Escherich’s time, resembles that of Rhyditoponera. The transportee 
is either seized at the mandibles or at the “neck” or “cheeks” and 
curled over the head of the transporting worker (Fig. 2). But there 
are a few other exceptions: we found, for example, that the harvest- 
ing ants Pogonomyrmex badius , P. rugosus and P. barbatus employ 
a rather primitive carrying technique. As in Odontomachus the 
transportee is grasped at any part of the body, lifted up and carried 
away. During transportation the carried individual folds its ap- 
pendages to the body (Fig. ib). This primitive transporting behavior 
is especially remarkable, because in some other Pogonomyrmex spe- 
cies, for example P. maricopa, we found the typical highly stereo- 
typed adult transport behavior described above for other myrmicine 
ants (Fig. 2) . 
Formicinae: 
The most uniform and stereotyped social carrying behavior can be 
observed in the subfamily Formicinae. In several species we have 
analyzed the behavioral patterns that initiate and guide carrying be- 
havior and found them to be virtually invariant. For the following, 
more detailed description of this behavior we have chosen Campono- 
tus sericeus, a common species on Ceylon. The description is based 
on single frame analyses of slow motion pictures (Fig. 3). 
When a recruiting ant faces a nestmate head on, it conducts a 
jerking behavior for 2-3 seconds, grasping the nestmate at the mandi- 
bles and subsequently pulling it forward. Usually the recruiting ant 
responds by turning around for 180°. The nestmate is thereby slightly 
lifted, and this elevation evidently causes it to fold its legs tightly to 
the body and to roll the gaster inward. In this “pupal” posture it is 
then carried to the target area. 
Identical stereotyped adult transport behavior has been observed 
in many formicine ants and has been described in particular detail in 
Formica rufa (Zahn 1957), F. polyctena (Kneitz 1964, Moglich 
I 97 I )> Cataglyphis (Wehner and Lutz 1969), Camponotus socius 
(Holldobler 1971) and several other species. 
Sex specific carrying postures 
Reproductive females are sometimes carried like workers (Fig. 4). 
But in cases where the size difference is too large, workers merely 
