Comparative studies in the psychology of ants and of higher animals / by Eric Wasmann ; authorized English version of the 2nd German edition enlarged and revised by the author.

  • Erich Wasmann
Date:
1905
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Comparative studies in the psychology of ants and of higher animals / by Eric Wasmann ; authorized English version of the 2nd German edition enlarged and revised by the author. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    30/220 (page 16)
    stitution of ants1 is in fact organic; it consists in the descent from one fertile female, and in the differen¬ tiation of the descendants into castes differing in bodily and psychic qualities, as a result of the very same specific fertility. The social bond, however, which unites the members of an ant colony and sep¬ arates them from other colonies of the same species, is psychic and instinctive. It is the feeling of fellow¬ ship, the instinct of sociality, resulting from common descent; it is, moreover, the instinct of imitation which urges the workers of the same colony to act in concert. This unity and co-operation is effected by means of a certain sensile feeler language: by a touch of their feelers thousands of members of a colony immediately recognize one another as belong¬ ing to the same community and effectually discover the intruder; by taps of their antennae they exchange their feelings and perceptions and thus draw the attention of other workers of their colony to the same work. The same feeler language is also the means of communication of ants in mixed colonies with their auxiliaries of other species, and of genuine ant guests with their hosts. This distinction between members of their own colony and those of others is effected by very delicate organs of smell2 situated in the antennae. Members J) We mean here in the first place the simple ant societies which embrace no members of different species. 2) We have already proven in our work, “Die psychischen Faehig- keiten der Ameisen” (“Zoologica,” 26th issue, p. 10-16), that there is not merely question of a “chemical reflex” (as Bethe calls it), but of a real sensitive perception. On the other hand, Lubbock’s experiments (“On the senses, instincts and intelligence of animals” [London, 1889], p. 233 and foil.) have shown that an arbitrarily chosen sign or pass¬ word is equally out of place, as is evident from the fact that an ant which has lost its feelers is nevertheless recognized by her nest mates.