132 ORIGIN, ETC., OF THE FAUNA. 
south-eastern parts of ‘Asia, an area to which they were believed to be restricted until 
the discovery of the genus Metafecenia in Central America (Guerrero in Mexico). 
The Deinopide (Deinopis), occurring in North, Central, and South America, is also 
found in tropical Africa, Madagascar, and South Asia. Of greater interest, because of 
their restricted range, are the families Sicariide and Caponiide, both very sharply 
defined groups, the latter being also in some respects highly specialized or progressive. 
The Sicariide range in America from Chile up the western portions of the continent 
as far as Costa Rica, and are only found elsewhere in the world in South Africa. 
Similarly with the Caponiide. Of the three genera, Mops occurs in South America 
and the Antilles, Caponina in the Antilles and Central America (Guatemala), while 
the related genus Caponia is South African. These families corroborate the evidence 
derived from other sources for a direct connection between Africa and South America. 
The most prominent Spiders in the Central American fauna are those belonging to 
the web-spinning species of the family Argyopide. The distribution of some of the 
dominant genera of this family is as follows :—Nephila ranges from the warmer States 
of North America through:Central America into South America, and is abundant all 
over tropical Africa, Asia, and Australia ; Gasteracantha, a hard-shelled spine-bearing 
genus, has nearly the same distribution as Nephila. 'The other hard-shelled - spiny 
genus, Micrathena, is, however, restricted to America, where its range closely coincides 
with that of the two just mentioned. Argyope agrees closely with Nephila, but has 
a more northern distribution, at all events, in the Old World, where it reaches the 
Mediterranéan area. Finally, the genus Aranea (= Epeira) is practically cosmo- 
politan, extending from north temperate, if not subarctic, latitudes southwards all 
over the continents. 
These genera illustrate, as clearly as others which might have been selected, the 
wide distribution of a large number of the genera of Arachnomorphe recorded from 
Central America. 
