SPIDERS WEB-BUILDING. 211 



replacing it by another. Next it glues, immediately round 

 the centre, five or six small concentric circles, distant about 

 half a line from each other, and then four or five larger ones, 

 each separated by the space of half an inch or more. These 

 last serve as a sort of temporary scaffolding to walk over, and 

 to keep the radii properly stretched while it glues to them the 

 concentric circles that are to remain, which it now proceeds to 

 construct. Placing itself at the circumference, and fastening its 

 thread to the end of one of the radii, it walks up that one, 

 towards the centre, to such a distance as to draw the thread 

 from its body of a sufficient length to meet the next. Then 

 stepping across and conducting the thread with one of its hind 

 legs, it glues it with its spinners to the point in the adjoining 

 radius to which it is to be fixed. This process it repeats until 

 it has filled up nearly the whole space from the circumference 

 to the centre with concentric circles, distant from each other 

 about two lines. It always, however, leaves a vacant interval 

 around the smallest first spun circles that are nearest to the 

 centre, and bites away the small cotton-like tuft that united all 

 the radii, which being held now together by the circular threads 

 have thus probably their elasticity increased ; and in the cir- 

 cular opening, resulting from this procedure, it takes its station 

 and watches for its prey, or occasionally retires to a little apart- 

 ment formed under some leaf, which it also *ises as a slaughter- 

 house. 1 



According to Buchner, 



The long main threads, with the help of which the spider 

 begins and attaches its web, are always the thickest and strong- 

 est ; while the others, forming the web itself, are considerably 

 weaker. Injuries to the web at any spot the spider very 

 quickly repairs, but without keeping to the original plan, and 

 without taking more trouble than is absolutely necessary. 

 Most spiders' webs, therefore, if closely looked into, are found to 

 be somewhat irregular. When a storm threatens,, the spider, 

 which is very economical with its valuable spinning material, 

 spins no web, for it knows that the storm will tear it in pieces 

 and waste its pains, and it also does not mend a web which 

 has been torn. If it is seen spinning or mending, on the other 

 hand, fine weather may be generally reckoned on. . . . The 

 emerged young at first spin a very irregular web, and only 

 gradually learn to make a larger and finer one, so that here, as 

 everywhere else, practice and experience play a great part. . . 



1 Thompson, Passions of Animals, p. 145. 



