Wasps, Bees, and Ants 
551 
the far end are dry. He gives the ants no soil, forcing them to use the already 
made chambers. This formicarium reveals, therefore, none of the secrets 
of nest-building, but it does reveal admirably a host of those interesting pro¬ 
cesses connected particularly with the life-history of the individuals of the 
colony. Miss Fielde uses still another kind of nest, also like Janet’s with 
Fig. 753.—A Janet nest in vertical section, w.c., wet chamber; 1, 2, 3, brood-chambers; 
o., circular openings for brood-chambers made in c., a transparent cover; o.c., glass 
cover in three removable pieces; d.p., opaque cover; b.p. f base plate. (After Janet.) 
fixed chambers, but made wholly of glass, the requisite moisture being fur¬ 
nished by a bit of sponge kept soaked with water and placed in one of the 
communicating chambers. Fig. 754 with its caption explains the make-up 
of a Fielde nest. 
In the study of the life of ants by means of such formicaries as have just 
been described, as well as through observations in the field, the student, 
amateur or professional, should keep in mind certain particular desiderata 
in formicology. It is highly de¬ 
sirable to determine for as many 
species as possible the exact 
method of founding a new colony: 
isolate a queen in a small artifi¬ 
cial formicary, well provided 
with food, and see if she can and 
will begin one; isolate a small 
group of workers with some eggs 
or young larvae, but without a 
queen, and see if they can and do 
produce a queen and establish 
themselves as a permanent com¬ 
munity. The characteristic habits 
of feeding the young should be 
determined for various species; the presence of or possibility of producing 
ergatoid (wingless, worker-like) fertile females and males in the case of vari¬ 
ous species should be noted; and special attention should be given in all 
observations to determining in how far the behavior in general, and single pro¬ 
cesses in particular, can be explained as machine-like reflexes of unintelligent 
Fig. 754. — Plan of the Fielde ant-nest, 10 
inches by 6 inches, a, entrance and exit to 
food-rooms (1); 2, nursery; 3, sponge-room; 
b, screens; m, passage. 
