Argiope transversa.—This species is a little smaller than riparia. It lives in the same places and matures a little later, about September 1. The abdomen is more pointed than that of riparia [(fig. 455)]. The ground color is white or light yellow, and is crossed by a great number of black transverse lines, which are sometimes obscured, especially in young spiders, by a thick covering of silvery-white hairs. The cephalothorax is covered with white hairs through which the dark markings on the sides show indistinctly. The legs are light yellow, with black bands at the ends and middle of each joint. The femora of the first legs are sometimes entirely black. The young have the back entirely white. The markings of the under side are similar to those of riparia. The male [(fig. 456)] is colored like the female, but is only a fourth as large. The legs are yellow, marked with black spots, but have no rings. It has the same habits as riparia. It remains in its web later in the season, and makes a cocoon flattened on the top [(fig. 458)] instead of narrowed to a neck, like those of riparia.