170 THE AUSTRALIAN NATURALIST. 
“Observations should be made of animal matter, seeds or 
other vegetable matter carried, collected or fed upon by ants. 
Samples of both the ant and its food should if possible be 
obtained, and the specimens or notes made thereon could be 
forwarded to me. This information would then be tabulated 
and printed in Tne AusTRALIAN NATURALIST from time to 
time, and would serve as an acknowledgment to those send- 
ing information, and make the whole available to all mem- 
bers. 
Over 550 species and varieties of ants are recorded from 
Australia, some of which are extremely plentiful. By these 
records some knowledge will be gained of the immense part 
played by the ants in our bush—as scavengers and dissem- 
inators of seeds and fungi, their effect on plant life, their 
importance in checking or aiding the increase of other 
insects—and doubtless many other points to be revealed by 
cbservation, 
FLEAS. 
(By W. W. Froggatt.) 
For the study of fleas it is desirable to collect them ‘n 
various parts of the world from their hosts—mammals and 
birds. The Hon. C. N. Rothschild, Tring, England, who 
is studying this group of insects has forwarded directions 
how to collect and preserve specimens, These directions are 
printed below and may be of use to those wishing to col- 
lect and study these parasite insects. 
INSTRUCTIONS. 
Fleas are found on mammals and birds, in the hair or 
feathers. They are also found in their nests or holes. As 
soon as their hosts get cold, the fleas leave it. Should the 
host be small, place it in a small box or linen bag, with a 
few drops of chloroform or benzine. The fleas will then be 
found dead on the bottom of the box or bag, or amongg the 
hair, when the same is turned back. If the flea be touched 
with a small brush, moistened with spirit, chloroform, or 
benzine, it will stick to it, readily floating off in the tube 
of preservative. The best preservative is 50 per cent. of 
alcohol. Acetic acid can with advantage be substituted for 
this, when the specimens have not got to travel a long way. 
The action of the acid, however, destroys the corks of the 
tubes in a short time. - Each tube of fleas should be labelled 
with the date, locality, and name of the host from which the 
fleas were taken. If the name of the host on which the fleas 
