ARISTON.—META. 217 
Mawille, labium, and sternum similar to the legs in colour. 
Abdomen white above ; a slender cruciform line on the fore part of the upperside, two blotches in a transverse 
line towards the hinder part, the sides, underside, and a ring or patch just above the spinners enclosing a 
white spot, being of a pale dull greyish-black hue. The genital aperture and process are rather large 
and of very characteristic form. 
Hab. Mexico, Teapa in Tabasco (H. H. Smith). 
META, C. L. Koch. 
Meta superans, sp. n. 
Adult male, length very nearly 2 lines. 
This spider is nearly allied to Meta flava, Cambr. (antei, p. 135, t. 18. fig. 8), which it resembles closely in 
general colour and markings ; it is, however, smaller, and differs distinctly in the structure of the palpi, 
as well as in some other points. 
The cephalothorax is dull orange ; nearly the whole of the upper part of the caput is occupied by a somewhat 
tapering dark yellow-brown longitudinal band, which is continued through the thoracic junction to the 
hinder extremity ; this band is divided longitudinally as far as the thoracic junction by a fine line of the 
same colour as the cephalothorax generally ; the sides of the thorax are marked by converging dusky 
yellow-brown lines ; the thorax is strongly gibbous on each side of the thoracic junction, thus intensi- 
fying the depth of the normal indentation. 
The eyes are subequal, in the normal general position, and seated on black tubercles ; those of the fore- 
central pair are the largest. The curve of the posterior row is slight, and its convexity is directed 
forwards; that of the anterior row is strong, its convexity having the same direction. The four central 
eyes form a quadrangle slightly longer than broad, and its fore side slightly, but distinctly, longer than 
the hinder one. The interval between the hind-central pair is small, being just half that between each 
and the hind-lateral eye next to it. The fore-central pair are divided by about half a diameter’s 
interval. The height of the clypeus barely exceeds half the diameter of one of the fore-central eyes. 
Legs moderate in length and strength, 1, 2, 4, 3. Colour yellow, immaculate, except a very slight tinge of 
yellow-brown at the fore extremity of the first and second pairs. Spines normal. 
Palpi short ; radial and cubital joints very short, the latter with a long, strong, tapering bristle near its fore 
extremity on the upperside; the radial is stronger than the cubital joint, and besides other hairs and 
bristles has two long strong bristles near its extremity rather on the inner side, one of these being 
stronger and longer, the other less so than on the cubital joint; digital joint large, of irregular form, with 
a large kind of duplex lobe near its base directed inwards ; the palpal organs are highly developed and 
complex ; at their base, close above the fore extremity of the radial joint, is a large irregular corneous 
process, corresponding to one in a similar position in Meta flava, but of quite a different form; this 
process has three or four strong prominences, one of which is smaller than the rest, but distinctly bitid 
at its extremity, no such a one exists in M. flava ; at the fore extremity of the palpal organs is a strong, 
circularly curved, black, closely adherent spine, and within its coil are some other corneous processes.. 
Falces long, not very strong, nearly straight, the extremities slightly divergent ; colour yellowish-brown. 
Mazille and labium rather paler than the falces. 
Sternum yellow. 
Abdomen oval, of a dull leaden hue, marked with small dull silvery-white spots, some disposed in two 
longitudinal central converging lines indicating the position of the dorsal vessel, the rest along the sides 
and margins of the upperside. The colours, however, and markings of the abdomen had evidently 
suffered from preservation in spirit, and can hardly be relied upon, from their present appearance, in the 
only example as yet seen. 
Hab. Mexico, Teapa in ‘Tabasco (H. H. Smith). 
BIOL. CENTR.-AMER., Arachn. Aran., December 1896. 2 Et 
