. The wonder of life. Biology; Natural history; Zoology. 220 THE WONDER OF LIFE The so-called ' soldiers' play a very important role as guides and scouts. Wken Escherich broke a marck by making a little gully with bis finger, there was general disorganization in the ranks be- hind the interruption, and the spectacle was seen of the soldiers exerting themselves to the utmost to restore order and the broken connexion. They are also scouts, searching out new lines for forag- ing. ' Very carefully, step by step, just hke cats, they slink forwards, one behiad the other, and if the foremost detects
. The wonder of life. Biology; Natural history; Zoology. 220 THE WONDER OF LIFE The so-called ' soldiers' play a very important role as guides and scouts. Wken Escherich broke a marck by making a little gully with bis finger, there was general disorganization in the ranks be- hind the interruption, and the spectacle was seen of the soldiers exerting themselves to the utmost to restore order and the broken connexion. They are also scouts, searching out new lines for forag- ing. ' Very carefully, step by step, just hke cats, they slink forwards, one behiad the other, and if the foremost detects any- thing the least suspicious, he draws nervously back, pulling his "brave" comrades after him.' Professor Bugnion acted as war-correspondent to the black army from December 18 till March 8, and the story of the goings out and comings in is of great interest to the serious student of animal behaviour. We cannot do more than refer to a few of the observations. The importation of a second colony led to a war which lasted for three days, after which a peace was concluded, and the first colony (which had no queen and only a few children) joined the second. An excursion was made every day ; fifteen cocoa- trees were visited, some at a distance of 15-20 yards ; five roads were established, which were carefully adhered to. Occasionally, however, the whole army got lost, failing to find the track after they left the tree, and long detours. Fm. 42.—Soldier Termite, T ermes convulsion- ari«s ; enlarged. {After Bugnion and Popoff.). Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Thompson, John Arthur, Sir, 1861-1933. London, A. Melrose, Ltd
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