PDF - Wallace Online

TROPICAL NATUREespecially of Zingiberaceous plants.When the nest is toucheda number of the ants rush out, apparently in a great rage,stand erect, and make a loud rattling noise by tapping againstthe leaves. This no doubt frightens away many enemies, andis their only protection for though they attempt to ;bite, theirjaws are blunt and feeble, and they do not cause any pain.Coming now to the stinging groups, we have first a numberof solitary ants of the great genus Odontomachus, which areseen wandering about the forest and are conspicuous by theirenormously long and slender hooked jaws. These are notpowerful, but serve admirably to hold on by while they sting,which they do pretty severely. The Poneridse are another groupof large-sizedants which sting acutely. They are very variedin species but are not abundant individually. The Poneraclavata of Guiana is one of the worst stinging ants known.It is a large species, frequenting the forests on the ground, andis much dreaded by the natives, as its sting produces intensepain and illness. I was myself stung by this or an allied specieswhen walking barefoot in the forest on the Upper Rio Negro.It caused such pain and swelling of the leg that I had somedifficulty in reaching home, and was confined to my room for twodays. Sir Robert Schomburgh suffered more for he;faintedwith the pain, and had an attack of fever in consequence.We now come to the Myrmecidae, which may be calledthe destroying ants, from their immense abundance and destructivepropensities. Many of them sting most acutely,causing a pain like that of a sudden burn, whence they areoften called " fire-ants."They often swarm in houses anddevour everything eatable. Isolation by water is the onlysecurity, and even this does not always succeed, as a littledust on the surface will enable the smaller species to getacross. Oil is, however, an effectual protection, and aftermany losses of valuable insect specimens, for which ants havea special affection, I always used it. One species of thisgroup, a small black Crematogaster, took possession of myhouse in New Guinea, building nests in the roof and makingcovered ways down the posts and across the floor.They alsooccupied the setting boards I used for pinning out my butter-them withflies, filling up the grooves with cells and storingsmall spiders. They were in constant motion, running over