820 CLASS V. ARACHNID A. 



differ markedly from females. This family is nearly related to the pre- 

 ceding and seems to represent it in the cooler regions of the earth. 

 They are mostly stoutly built and smooth. There are but 6 genera. 

 Brachybothrium, Atypoides and Hexura are American, Mecicobothrium 

 from Argentina, Calommata Asia and Atypus European. The last named 

 has 2 British species, A. piceus and A. beckii ; both occur in the southern 

 half of the country, but the latter is very rare. A. piceus makes a tubular 

 nest lined with web in the earth, the web often projects. 



Sub-order -2. ARANEAE VERAE. 



'Chelicerae directed vertically or obliquely downwards, with lateral action, one 

 pair of pulmonary sacs, and tracheae with one pair of tracheal stigmata, six 

 spinnerets, a gnathobase on the pedipalps. 



Section I. CRIBELLATAE. 



Fam. 4. Hypochilidae. Four pulmonary sacs, an exception to the 

 characters of the sub-order ; the male is hardly a third the size of the 

 female. Two genera Hypochilus America and Ectatosticta China. 



Fam. 5. Uloboridae. Eight eyes, with one exception in 2 curved lines : 

 legs usually long and robust and very unequal in size, the anterior being 

 by far the longest ; 3 tarsal claws ; anal tubercle long. The spiders of this 

 family are clothed with squamous hairs. Seven genera. Dinopis and 

 Menneus are both tropical, Uloborus widely distributed, Sybota Medi- 

 terranean and American, Hi/ptiotes Europe and America, Myagrammopes, 

 widely distributed, ASbutina Brazil. 



Fam. 6. Psechridae. Legs of very unequal length, three claws and a tuft 

 of hairs. Sedentary spiders which weave very large webs. Psechrus with 

 2 species and Fecenia with 5 or 6 are both from Malaysia. 



Fam. 7. Zoropsidae. Scopulae or brushes of hairs on the tarsi and 

 metatarsi ; legs about the same size, cribellum and, especially, the cala- 

 mistrum not well developed. * Acanthoctenns, Central and South America, 

 Zoropsis Mediterranean and Canaries, Zorocrates America, and Eaecius 

 Ethiopian. 



Fam. 8. Dictynidae. Cephalothorax oval, the cephalic portion large ; 

 eyes in two almost parallel rows ; chelicerae long and robust ; legs moderate 

 and about equal in length. These are sedentary spiders constructing a 

 rather irregular web with no retreat into which the owner can retire. 

 There are 16 genera, widely distributed, Amaurobius (Figs. 532, 535) is 

 British, Nurscia Central Asia, Lathys and Dictyna Old and New World. 



Fam. 9. CEcobiidae. Cephalothorax reniform ; sternum very large ; 

 chelicerae small and feeble ; anal tubercle large and with 2 joints. (Ecobius 

 with some 15 species is the only genus, mostly tropical and sub-tropical, 

 though they spread into the Mediterranean district. They usually live 

 in deserts weaving their webs under stones, etc. Except for the cribellum 

 they are allied to the Urocteidae. 



Fam. 10. Eresidae. Cephalothorax thick ; cephalic portion large ; 

 eyes arranged in two squares one inside the other ; chelicerae robust ; 

 legs short ; large cribellum : exoskeleton covered with thick hairs. Stegody- 

 phus, widely spread in the Old World, builds its web in bushes. The re- 

 maining four genera which are mainly African, Adonea, Dresserus, Dorceus 

 and Eresus, build their webs on the ground. 



Fam. 11. Filistatidae. Cephalothorax oval and elongated; eyes 



