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The Ants of the Baltic Amber CHICAGO Natural History MUSEUM ^' 'f J' --'-f:{' Schriften der Physikalisch-okonotnischen Gesellschaft zu Konigsberg in Pr. Fiinfundfiinfzigster Jahrgang. 1914. Mlt 71 Textabbildungen. Mit UnteistOtzung durch den Staat, die Provinz und die Stadt K5nlgsberg. Verantwortllcher Redakteur: Prof. Dr. M. LOhe. LEIPZIG UND BERLIN BEI B. G. TEUBNER. 1915. The ants of the Baltic amber by William Morton Wheeler Leipzig und Berlin 1915 159212 QL LoVBy Schriften der Physikalisch-okonomischen Qesellschaft zu Konigsberg in Pr. Funfundfiinfzigster Jahrgang. 1914. Mit 71 Textabbildungen. Mit UnterstiJtzung durch den Staat, die Provinz und die Stadt Konigsberg. Verantwortlicher Redakteur: Prof. Dr. M. Liihe. LEIPZIG UND BERLIN BE! B. G. TEUBNER. 1915. ^' Sibk f)^^ d n^ r?.A>c^4L^ 'SL-.. > <^^^ Inhalt des LV. Jahrganges. Abhandlungen. William Morton Wheeler; The Ants of the Baltic Amber. (Mit 66 Figuren) Seite 1 Bericht iiber die wissenschaftlichen Verhandlungen auf der 52. Jahresversamm- lung in Marienwerder Westpr. am 11. Oktober 1913 sowie iiber die Tatigkeit des PreuBischen Botanischen Vereins. Redigiert von Professor Dr. Abromeit. Geschiiftliche Sitzung Seite 143 HiLBERT: Tiber Pinites Protolarix Goeppert (Mit 3 Figuren) =143 Steffen: Zur Flora des Kreises Lyck =147 Fuhrer: Floristische TJntersuchungen in den Kreisen Bastenburg, Bossel und Teilen angrenzender Kreise - \bh Wangerin: Untersuchung der Vegetationsverhdltnisse im westlichen Telle des Grofien Moosbruches =168 Lettau: Ergebnisse gelegentlicher Ausfliige in den Kreisen Johannisburg, Sensburg und Insterburg =180 Hilbert: Pflanzenmifibildung = 182 Kopetsch: Bemerkenswerte Pflanzen ... = 182 MiJLLER: Pflanzen von Kernel und Gumbinnen = 183 Preuss: Bemerkenswerte Pflanzen '• = 183 Beyer: Pflanzen von Darkehmen = 184 KOPPE: Pflanzen aus Flatow 184 Schexk: Pflanzen aus Ortelsburg • = 184 Migge: Pflanzen aus Osterode - 185 Fahrenholtz: Pflanzen aus Reichenbach =185 Abromeit: Seltene Pflanzen 185 Abromeit: Mitteilungen aus den Vereinssitzungen 188 .Vbromeit: Exkursionen im Sommer 1913 210 1 Bericht uber die Sitzungen der Physikalisch-okonom. Gesellschaft. Erstattet vom derzeitigen Sekretar. Von den mit einem * versehenen Vortrjigen enthalten die Schriften keine Referate. Plenarsitzungen und Generalversammlungen. Plenarsitzung am 8. Januar 19.4 *Wagner: Enitvickelung des Briickenbaues Seite 213 Plenarsitzung am 5. Februar 191 Tornquist: tjber die Wirkung&n der Sturmflut am 9. und 10. Ja- nuar auf Samland und Nehrung =213 Flenarsitzung am 5. Marz 1914 Thienemann: tJber den jetzigen Stand des Berivgungsversuchs . Seite 218 Ordentliche Generalversammlung am 5. Marz 1914 Vorstandswahl = 214 Voranschlag 1914/15 =215 Plenarsitzung am 2. April 1914 Kaufmann: tJber Wechselstrom = 215 Plenarsitzung am 7. Mai 1914 *Ach: Entwickelung und Methoden der modernen PsycJiologie . - 215 Plenarsitzung am 11. Juni 1914 Bratjn: Zur Erinnerung an Carl Chun = 216 Plenarsitzung am 5. November 1914 VoGEL: Riickblick auf die Geschichte der nunmehr 125 Jahre be- stehenden Physikalisch-okonomischen Gesellschaft = 224 Ordentliche Generalversammlung am 5. November 1915 RechnungsabschluS fiir 1914 =228 Plenarsitzung am 3. Dezember 1914 Rupp: Die deufsche chemische Industrie und der Weltkrieg ... = 228 Sektionssitzungen. I. Mathematisch-physikalische Sektion. Sitzung am 15. Januar 1914 *Kuhnemann: Tiber ein Universal- Epidiaskop Seite 230 Sitzung am 12. Februar 1914 Bohm: Einfiihrung in die Relativitatstheorie = 230 Sitzung am 14. Mai 1914 *B6hm: Geometrische Interpretation des Prinzips der Relativitat und des Versuches von Michelson = 231 Sitzung am 25. Juni 1914 Kaufmann; Beobachtungen aus den Gebieten der astronomischen und terrestrischen Optik sowie der Elektrizifatslehre .... = 281 II. Faiinistische Sektion. Sitzung am 22. Januar 1914 Tischler: Nordische und iistliche Wintervogel in Ostpreuflen . Seite 231 Tischler: Eine ostpreufiische Vogelschutzkolonie = 233 Sitzung am 19. Februar 1914 Luhe: Massenhaftes Auftreten von Coccinelliden = 288 ViETS, Bremen: Zur Kenntnis der Hydracarinen- Fauna von Osi- und Westpreujien ^md Brandenburg. (Mit 2 Figureii) .... = 234 Moschler: Sammelbericht fiir 1913 240 Sitzung am 19. Marz 1914 MCller: Einfiufi der Vegetation auf die Fauna 242 Sitzung am 28. Juui 1914 *Vogel: Atgen auf Di/tiscus, Julus = 245 *MiJLLER: Tier welt des Frischen Raffs ^^ 246 *Luhe: Plankton des Titisees = 246 III. Biologische Sektion. Sitzung am 29. Januar 1914 *Reiter: Bildung der Schntzstoffe in vivo und in vitro .... = 246 Sitzung am 26. Februar 1914 *Ellinger: Beitrage zur Lehre von dem intermedidren Stoffwechsel 246 *Kisskalt: Uber den Zusammenhang zwischen Hungersnoten und Seuchen = 246 Sitzung am 30. April 1914 *Sohreiber: Yorgdnge beim Schluckakt - 246 Sitzung am 28. Mai 1914 *Muller: Die Giftigkeit des Seeivasse^s = 246 *RUPP: Vorfiihrung einer physiologischen Filmaufnahme .... = 246 Sitzung am 25. Juni 1914 *Kasten: Abderhaldensche Abwehrfermente = 246 AUgemeiner Bericht iiber die Tatigkeit im Jahre 1914 = 247 Bibliotheksbericht fur das Jahr 1914 248 Personalbestand = 249 -o-cgg:—c- The Ants of the Baltic Amber. By William Morton Wheeler Ph. D. Professor of Economic Entomology, Harvard University. Seven years ago the late Professor Richard Klebs of Konigsberg requested me to study and describe the ants in his beautiful collection of amber inclusions, and, on my consenting, forthwith sent me all of his specimens, 1405 in number. A year later Professor A. Tornquist generously sent me the entire Formicid collection of the Konigliche BernsteinsammluDg des Geologischen Instituts of Konigsberg. This remarkable collection comprises 7819 specimens, exclusive of Gustav Mayr's types, which were also loaned me for reexamination. In addition to this material I have been able to study three smaller collections. Monsieur G. Seyerin loaned me the collection of the Brussels Museum, comprising 19 specimens, Dr. Richard Heymons that of the Berlin Museum, comprising 115, and Mr. William Haren of St. Louis, Missouri, his private collection of 169 specimens. Thus I have been able to study altogether 9527 ants from the Baltic amber. I wish to express my indebtedness to all these gentlemen for the loan of so many speci- mens, and, especially to Prof. Tornquist for permission to retain so much valuable material in my possession for several years. I sincerely regret that the work has been so unduly protracted and so frequently interrupted by urgent professional duties. This regret is the deeper, because Prof. Klebs, who first interested me in the subject and gave me much friendly assistance in the early part of the work, did not live to see it completed. As many previous students have remarked, the study of the insects embedded in the amber is frought with many and peculiar difficulties. Although some specimens are as beautifully clear as if they had just been carefully dehydrated and embedded in Canada balsam by an expert histologist, most of the specimens are either in awkward positions or have portions of the body concealed beneath milky or silvery films or air-bubbles or obscured by disconcerting cracks, or the highly refractive medium gives rise to distorted images which can be corrected only by repeated examination in the most various lights or by careful comparison of numerous specimens of the same species. It is, of course, possible to dissolve the amber away Scbriften d. Physikal.-okonom. Gesellscbaft. Jabr^ang LV. 1 2 William Mobton Wheeler. from the insects, but when this is done, only a black, crumbling, residue of decomposed chitin remains. At least this was all I saw of the few common specimens which I attempted to free from their matrix. KoRNiLOWiTSCH ^) in a paper cited by Klebs, seems to have shown that even the fine histological details of the leg musculature may be preserved in Diptera and Neuroptera, but I have never observed such details in the ants in situ, although the chitin of their legs is often very transparent. All the little blocks of amber containing the specimens belong- ing to the various collections had been carefully cut and polished, and, in many instances, enclosed in cells full of Canada balsam and mounted on slides, to preserve them from the slow darkening in color and partial opacity, which the originally very transparent, pale yellow amber is liable to take on when long exposed to the air. This change is, unfortunately, very noticeable in Mayr's types, which were simply glued to slides and are now much darker and more obscure than they could have been when the distinguished myrmecologist described them nearly half a century ago. All the specimens in the Klebs, Brussels, Berlin and Haren Collections and most of those in the Konigsberg Collection are carefully numbered. Except in cases where there are very many specimens of the same species, I have taken pains to cite all these numbers, so that my types and often also a long series of cotypes may be readily recognized by any future investigator, Mayr's work on the ants of the Baltic amber published in 1868^) is such a thorough and comprehensive masterpiece that even the much larger amount of material which has since accumulated, necessitates comparatively few changes. That this work has enormously facilitated my study, goes without saying. As his species are all easily re- cognizable from his descriptions and figures, notwithstanding the somewhat diagrammatic character of the latter, I have deemed it unne- cessary to repeat his tables or to rewrite the majority of his diagnoses and the history of the older literature of the subject.
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