PARDOSA. 317 
** Posterior margin of the caprhike plate sinuous, more prominent in 
the centre . . . . oe - oe 6 « . . plagula, sp. n. 
i*, Cap-like plate situated about the centre of the vulval area. ww Cw ftavipalpis. 
II. Vulval area exhibiting a modification of the cap-like plate to form a deep 
central concave groove. 
a’. Central groove longer. Posterior margin of the vulva with a distinct 
1-shaped process, its narrow stem running forward along the floor of 
thechannel. ©. 2 1 1 1 1 ee ee ee ee ee unguifera. 
6°. Central groove shorter. Posterior margin of the vulva with a broad, 
convex, oval-transverse piece . . . . . . . . - « . . SMineata, sp. n. 
B. Vulval area without any distinct, small, cap-like plate anteriorly, nor modi- 
fication of one. Vulva with a long, central, shallow channel . . . . . canalis,sp.n. 
Nore.—The coloration of these spiders is so much alike in the various species and so variable amongst 
individuals that reliable characters cannot be drawn from this source. It is possible also that some of the 
males and females here described under different names may eventually be found to be of the same species, 
but there is at present no sufficient evidence to justify this conclusion. 
The characters of P. milvina, P. accurata, P. medialis, P. sabulosa, and P. bellona are unknown to me, and 
cannot, therefore, be included in the table; unfortunately, the figures given by Banks render identification of 
his three species mere guesswork, being insufficiently detailed. 
1. Pardosa prolifica, sp.n. (Tab. XXX. figg. 19,19 a, ¢; 20, 20a, 2.) 
Type ¢, gynetype 2, in coll. Godman & Salvin. Total length, ¢ 6, Q 7 millim. 
Colour very variable in both sexes, becoming darker as the spiders advance towards maturity. In the 
light-coloured varieties the carapace is brown, with a central pale band, dilated behind the posterior 
eyes, but not extending into the ocular area. Abdomen brown, with pale speckles and a central, 
anterior, pale, lanceolate bar, which is followed by a pair of pale spots on each side at its apex, 
and by a central series of four pale spots, each with a pair of black setigerous spots. Ventral area 
entirely clothed with white hairs. Sternum yellow. Legs yellow, annulated with black. Mandibles 
yellow. 
In darker varieties of the female and in the male sex the yellow colour is much obscured and the pale spots 
on the abdomen become obsolete, while the legs are almost unicolorous brown, with only very faint 
indications of annuli. In the vast majority of examples the sternum is black, with a narrow, pale yellow, 
central line. 
Palpus of the male deep black, especially the tibia and tarsus, which are clothed with a very dense covering of 
short black hairs. 
Palpal organs quite characteristic : the central process is very long, comparatively narrow, with a short black 
spur at its base, strongly geniculate in its basal half, curving obliquely forward across to the outer 
margin, where it is deflected and truncate; across and beneath it, about the middle, runs a conspicuous 
black spine, its point directed backward and towards the outer side. 
Vulva of the female usually longer than broad, but variable in form, consisting of a short, transverse, anterior, 
. convex cap, concave beneath, and posteriorly a pair of cavities, whose chitinous margins are variously 
conformed, usually rounded rectangular, the inner margins coalescent in the middle line, forming a central 
bridge. A narrow longitudinal groove runs along the centre of the area, disappearing under the anterior 
cap, and is formed by two broad chitinous pieces, whose posterior margins are sinuous and overlap the’ 
anterior part of the two cavities. Sometimes the central groove vanishes, leaving a broad, pale, central 
area. 
