ZOOLOGY. 317 



of a large spider of another species. The latter immediately 

 threw itself upon the other, enveloped it with threads, and 

 began to feed upon it, when the poisonous species, disengag- 

 ing its jaws, bit one of the feet of its victor. Immediately it 

 let go and ran away, holding up its bitten leg, which seemed 

 to be paralyzed, and, rubbing it against the threads of its 

 web, in an instant detached it from its body. The large spi- 

 der, consciously or not, resolved to save its life by amputat- 

 ing its leg. It remained quiet for a while near its web, and 

 then went into it with one leo- less. Durino- this time the 

 poisonous spider had extricated herself from the web and 

 ran away. I then threw it back into the web. The other 

 spider darted upon it and again swathed it in silk; but, 

 more prudent this time, it devoured it without being bit- 

 ten." This is the first account we have happened to meet 

 with of truly venomous spiders, which probably are not so 

 common as is usually supposed. In the Southern States is 

 a species of Zatrodectes, a large black spider, with a large 

 globular abdomen, which is known to be poisonous and is 

 allied to a venomous species inhabiting Southern Europe. 



In a recent paper on the digestive organs of the harvest- 

 men, or Phalangids, Professor Felix Plateau, the eminent 

 Belgian physiologist, claims that the so-called liver of spi- 

 ders, as well as of Crustacea, is not a true liver, but that its 

 office is the secretion of the principal digestive fluid. 



The harvestmen (Phalangidw) of Europe and Western 

 Asia have been revised by Professor T. Thorell in a paper 

 published at Genoa. The paper is of much use to American 

 students, as certain of the genera are represented in this 

 country, particularly in caverns. In this connection we may 

 add that M. Simon, of Paris, has published a list of the cave 

 fauna of Europe, the animals comprising it being chiefly spi- 

 ders, insects proper, and myriopods. 



A second memoir on scorpions by Dr. Thorell, published 

 at Milan, is mainly descriptive, and contains full diagnoses 

 of several Mexican, Californian, Central, and South American 

 scorpions. The species of American Gcdeodes, a spider-like 

 form, have been studied by J. D. Putnam. While eighteen 

 species of this interesting genus have occurred in other parts 

 of the world, two American ones have been described by Say, 

 and it is probable that three others are in existence. They 



