VOL. II.] Californian Turret-Building Slider. 319 



which during the rainy season dig out and enlarge their tubes. At 

 this age and time the young do not carry off or scatter the earth 

 brought out of the tube, but utiHze it by building an earthen turret, 

 and in wet weather the earth becomes a regularly formed and com- 

 pact figure with the rim thickened, reminding one of a mmiature 

 vase in terra cotta without lid or covei' of any kind. 



The sexes when mjiture occupy different nests, but the newly 

 hatched young are found with the mother at the bottom of her bur- 

 row, which is more roomy at the base than at the opening. There 

 is a period of cestivation, but the cause is not yet investigated. 



The Californian turret building spider is closely allied to the trap- 

 door spider, the former however being smaller, more elongate and 

 possessing at the base of the mandibules of the male a club-like 

 projection covered with black bristles at the upper part of the tip, 

 while the female has but a shallow tubercle in the same region. The 

 Other Californian species of notable spiders belonging to the The- 

 raphosidce are: The great tarantula of Southern California, Ari- 

 zona, and Texas, and the lesser tarantula belonging to the middle 

 of California. The use of the word "tarantula" is rather wide 

 and dubious in application. While the tarantula of the Southern 

 States is of the same family as the true tarantula of Spain— Lyco- 



-the Californian tarantula is of the Theraphosidse (^MygalidcTeJ. 

 In fact the name carries with it no meaning of value because in 

 each locality the name is bestowed upon the largest hairy spider of 

 the region, Irrespective of its classification or habits. The Cali- 

 fornian trap-door spider and the Californian tarantula are also con- 

 founded, and visitors to our coast who take home with them a 

 spider souvenir, purchased af one of our so-called Natural History 

 Stores, are unaware they are cherishing a mis-matched memento 

 of some one's cupidity, and, in some instances, of their own as well. 

 The large spider called " Cahfornian tarantula" does not fabricate 

 a nest with a trap-door, but commercial enterprise supplies the de- 

 mand by annexing a specimen of MygaJe Hentzii to the trap-door 

 nest of Cteniza Californica. Some years ago I made an ineffectual 

 effort to persuade one of the dealers to sell the real spider, but the 

 man of business replied that he knew all about the matter, but 

 the public would not be satisfied with the smaller spider, and that 

 he could not trade without the larger animal. 



sidae 



