PREFACE.

The object of this book is to give a plain account of the best known habits of spiders, and as much of their anatomy and classification as is necessary to understand these habits. The portion on the spinning and flying habits is copied chiefly from Blackwall and Menge; that on the trap-door spiders from Moggridge; and the habits of Nephila and Hyptiotes, from Wilder. The observations of these authors have been repeated as far as possible, and some changes and additions made to their accounts of them. The numerous stories of deadly poison, supernatural wisdom, and enormous size and strength of spiders, have been omitted as doubtful. Several cuts from the papers of Professor Wilder have been repeated by favor of the author and publishers. Most of the figures are, however, new, and engraved by photography from my own drawings.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.
PAGE
Anatomy and Classification.—External Parts of a Spider.—Feet. —Palpi and Maxillæ.—Mandibles.—Breathing-Holes.—Epigynum. —Spinnerets.—Eyes.—Colors and Markings.—Internal Organs.— Intestine.—Heart.—Breathing-Organs.—Nervous System.— Poison Glands.—Families of Spiders[11]
CHAPTER II.
Eating and Biting.—Structure of the Mandibles.—Mouth.—Eating Insects.—Biting.—Experiments on Poison of Spiders. —Tame Spiders[32]
CHAPTER III.
Spinning-Habits.—Spinnerets.—Spinning-Glands.—Beginning of a Thread.—Holes and Nests.—Burrows of Lycosa.—Trap-door Nests.—Tubes and Nests of Drassidæ.—Webs of Agalena.—Webs of Linyphia and Theridion.—Spiders living in Webs made by Others.—Round Webs.—Epeira Vulgaris.—Zilla.—Nephila.— Habits in the Web.—Curled Webs.—Cribellum and Calamistrum. —Webs of Amaurobius.—Regular Webs of Dictyna.—Triangle Web.—Round Webs with Curled Thread[38]
CHAPTER IV.
Growth of Spiders.—Differences between Male and Female.— Differences between Old and Young.—Male and Female of Nephila and Argiope.—Heads of Male Erigone.—Palpal Organs.—Epigynum. —Use of Palpal Organs and Epigynum in Various Spiders.—Laying Eggs.—Cocoons of Drassus, Attus, and Epeira.—Cocoons of Argyrodes and Argiope.—Care of the Cocoon.—Parasites.—Growth in the Egg.—Hatching.—Habits of Young Spiders.—Moulting. —Habitats of Spiders.—Distribution of Spiders[86]

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE
1.Under Side of Epeira Vulgaris[13]
2.Foot of Epeira Vulgaris[14]
3.Foot of Attus Mystaceus[15]
4.Upper Side of Epeira Vulgaris[18]
5.Section of Epeira Vulgaris[20]
6.Mygale Hentzii[24]
7.Dysdera Interrita and Eyes[26]
8.Drassus[26]
9.Agalena Nævia[27]
10.Lycosa and Eyes[28]
11.Salticus and Eyes[29]
12.Thomisus and Eyes[30]
13.Theridion[31]
14.Mandibles of Epeira Vulgaris. Front View[33]
15.Claw of Mandible[33]
16.Spinnerets of Epeira Vulgaris[39]
17.Single Spinning Tube[40]
18.Spinning-Glands[40]
19.Spinneret of Prosthesima[41]
20.Spinneret of Agalena with some of the hairs removed[41]
21.End of Thread[42]
22.Trap-door Nests. Copied from Moggridge[47]
23.Nest of Dolomedes[52]
24.Web of Agalena[55]
25.Web of Linyphia Marmorata[57]
26.Web of Linyphia Communis[59]
27.Pholcus swinging[61]
28.Round Web of Epeira Vulgaris[62]
29.Web of Zilla[65]
30.Web of Nephila Plumipes. From Wilder[66]
31.Part of Web of Nephila, to show the smooth threads. From Wilder[67]
32.Epeira Spinea[69]
33.Spinnerets of Amaurobius[72]
34.Calamistrum of Amaurobius[73]
35.Dictyna spinning Curled Web[73]
36.Part of Web of Amaurobius[74]
37.Part of Web of Dictyna, showing regular arrangement of threads[75]
38.Unfinished Web of Triangle Spider. From Wilder[76]
39.Finished Web of Triangle Spider, and Spider holding the Web.
From Wilder[78]
40.Young Lycosa flying[81]
41.Flying Spider with a Thread attached to the Ground[84]
42.Large Attus flying by a Brush of Threads[85]
43.Male and Female Nephila Plumipes. From Wilder,
in Proceedings Boston Society Natural History[78]
44,45.Heads of Males of Several Species of Erigone[88], [89]
46.Palpal Organ of Mygale[89]
47.Palpal Organ of Epeira[90]
48.Palpal Organ of Theridion[91]
49.Epigynum of Epeira Riparia[92]
50.Epigynum of Theridion[93]
51.Epigynum of Theridion[94]
52.Copulation of Lycosa[95]
53.Copulation of Linyphia[96]
54.Copulation of Agalena[96]
55.Copulation of Epeira Riparia[97]
56.Drassus laying Eggs[99]
57.Lycosa carrying Cocoon attached to her Spinnerets[100]
58.Attus Mystaceus laying Eggs[101]
59.Epeira Strix making Cocoon[101]
60.Epeira Strix laying Eggs[102]
61.Cocoon of Argyrodes hanging by a Stem[103]
62.Cocoon of Epeira Riparia. From Wilder[103]
63.Eggs during Segmentation[106]
64.Eggs further Advanced[108]
65.Young Epeira Riparia after First Moult[109]
66.Moulting of Nephila Plumipes. From Wilder
in Proceedings American Association[111]
67.Nephila Plumipes just after Moulting. From Wilder[111]

THE STRUCTURE AND HABITS
OF SPIDERS.

CHAPTER I.
ANATOMY AND CLASSIFICATION.

The spiders form a small and distinct group of animals, related to the scorpions, the daddy-long-legs, and the mites, and less closely to the insects and crabs. They are distinguished by the more complete separation of the body into two parts; by their two-jointed mandibles, discharging a poisonous secretion at the tip; and by their spinning-organs, and habits of making cobwebs and silk cocoons for their eggs.

The common round-web spider, Epeira vulgaris of Hentz, will serve as well as any species to show the anatomy of spiders in general. [Fig. 1] shows the under side of this spider; [Fig. 4], the upper side; and [Fig. 5], an imaginary section through the body, to show the arrangement of the internal organs. To begin with [Fig. 1]: the body is seen to be divided into two parts, connected only by the narrow joint, A, just behind the last pair of legs. The front half of the body, called the thorax, contains the stomach, the central part of the nervous system, and the large muscles which work the legs and jaws. The hinder half, the abdomen, contains the intestine, the breathing-organs, the principal circulating-vessels, the organs of reproduction, and the spinning-organs. Connected with the thorax are six pairs of limbs, four pairs of legs, B B B B, a pair of palpi, C, and a pair of mandibles, D.

Fig. 1.