334 
EASTERN ETHIOPIA 
XXVII 
by very simple means. A network of boughs is built 
around the hill and thatched with grass so that it looks 
like a miniature hut, and if there are many nests in the 
neighbourhood, an appearance resembling a small village 
is produced. In Uganda a covering of bark cloth is 
thrown over the nest (see p. 64), and when the termites 
issue from the holes near the base of the nest they strike 
the roof and tumble into the receptacle set out for them. 
When these insects swarm unexpectedly the natives 
use smoke and quickly bring them to the ground. 
Many of course escape, and are pursued by every winged 
thing in the neighbourhood. Some of the birds get so 
replete with these fat insects that they are unable to 
close their bills. 
The natives often eat the termites as they catch them ; 
but it is a more common custom to cook them or eat 
them when mixed with other food. European travellers 
have eaten termites, and Schweinfurth described them 
as a welcome addition to his slender larder, which 
helped to compensate for lack of grease. Smeathman 
states that he has eaten termites on several occasions 
and found them delicate, nourishing, and wholesome. 
Termites are not as a rule found above an altitude of 
4,000 feet; on the Baringo plain they are common, of a 
carious shape and attain a great height. In ^ome parts 
of Africa the hills are shaped like mushrooms, but the 
majority are conical. 
Drummond states that the most peculiar as well as 
the most ornate kind of “ ant-heap” in Africa is a small 
variety from one to two feet in height which occurs in 
myriads along the shores of Lake Tanganyika. It is 
built in symmetrical tiers, and resembles a pile of small 
rounded hats, one above another, the rims depending 
like eaves, and sheltering the body of the hill from rain. 
When a number of ant-hills are built in a wood, the 
appearance they produce among the trees and tall grass 
is that of a neglected cemetery; the termitaria resemble 
obelisks and grave stones. The ant-hills are sometimes 
