128 ALEXAN'DER PETKUNKEV1TCH. 



Meanwhile the male came quite close and was evidently watching 

 her, at the same time cleaning his legs and palpi by drawing them 

 through his mandibles. After a while he again began his courtship ; 

 patted her back, standing face to face and tried to bring his 

 front legs under her body. Later she left the hole without finish- 

 ing it, returning to it from time to time. They met several 

 times on the ground, always with mandibles wide open and 

 touching each other with the four front legs. At times the female 

 would make a threatening move toward the male upon which 

 he would dra\v back, but invariably a rapid trembling would 

 seize his four front legs, which lasted from 10-15 seconds. At 

 times when she was out of the hole as though in search of some- 

 thing, he would occuply her place in it. On returning, she gently 

 displaced him. Later as the female showed no intention of ac- 

 cepting the male, I separated them by means of the wire screen. 



The next day was cold and rainy and both spiders were found 

 in the morning in separate excavations covered up with earth 

 and web. On the third day after a stormy night it became w r arm. 

 and the glass was placed in the sunshine. The screen w-as re- 

 moved and the spiders pushed out of their holes. The male at 

 once went to the female, meeting her face to face. He crept 

 under her sternum and took her firmly by the petiolus between 

 his mandibles with fangs drawn in. With his legs he embraced 

 her in such a way that his right front leg passed between the 

 mandibles (with fangs open) of the female and rested on her back. 

 His left front leg passed between her right mandible and palpus 

 and also rested on her back. The other legs passed similarly 

 between the legs of the female and touched her back. She seemed 

 to make no objection whatever. They tried several times to 

 change their position, the female creeping from place to place 

 while the male continued to cling to her. Finally she lay down 

 on her side and he applied the palpus (at 10.43 A. M.), all the 

 while patting her with his third leg. The coitus lasted five 

 minutes, after which they slowly separated and going to opposite 

 sides of the dish hid themselves in the ground. During the 

 whole time the back of the male was in contact with the sternum 

 of the female, a position not common to the majority of spiders. 



In a recent paper on the courtship of araneids Professor Mont- 



