| → entering 1859 |
| returning home and entering 1860 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
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| → the returning file 1859 |
| a long file of ants 1860 1861 1869 1872 |
| a long life of ants 1866 |
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At the same time I laid on the same place a small parcel of the pupæ of another species, F. flava,
a few of these little yellow ants still clinging to the fragments of
This species is sometimes, though rarely, made into slaves, as has been described by Mr. Smith. Although so small a species, it is very courageous, and I have seen it ferociously attack other ants. In one instance I found to my surprise an independent community of F. flava under a stone beneath a nest of the slave-making F. sanguinea; and when I had accidentally disturbed both nests, the little ants attacked their big neighbours with surprising courage. Now I was curious to ascertain whether F. sanguinea could distinguish the pupæ of F. fusca, which they habitually make into slaves, from those of the little and furious F. flava, which they rarely capture, and it was evident that they did at once distinguish
for we have seen that they eagerly and instantly seized the pupæ of F. fusca, whereas they were much terrified when they came across the pupæ, or even the earth from the
of F. flava, and quickly ran away; but in about a quarter of an hour, shortly after all the little yellow ants had crawled away, they took heart and carried off the pupæ. |
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| One evening I visited another community of F. sanguinea, and found a number of these ants
→entering
their
carrying the dead bodies of F. fusca (showing that it was not a migration) and numerous pupæ. I traced
→the returning file
burthened with booty, for about forty
a very thick clump of heath, whence I saw the last individual of F. sanguinea emerge, carrying a pupa; but I was not able to find the desolated nest in the thick heath. The nest, however, must have been close at hand, for two or three individuals of F. fusca were rushing about in the greatest agitation, and one was
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