vni] CRAB-SPIDERS. MIMICRY 57 



fanciful resemblances have been detected and 

 advantages of which there is no proof are some- 

 times asserted, and moreover other possible ways 

 of accounting for the facts have been too much 

 overlooked. 



But however it has come about, there is a case of 

 "mimicry" among crab-spiders which deserves more 

 than a passing mention. The name of the spider in 

 question is Phrynarachne dedpiens, and it was 

 accidently discovered by Forbes when butterfly- 

 hunting in Java. It spins a white patch of silk on 

 the upper side of a leaf on which it places itself back- 

 downwards, clinging to the web by means of spines 

 on its legs. It then folds its legs closely and lies 

 absolutely still. In this position the spider and web 

 look precisely like the dropping of some bird upon 

 the leaf; such droppings are frequently seen, and 

 seem to be particularly attractive to butterflies. It 

 was not until Forbes tried to catch a butterfly settled 

 on a leaf that he found that what looked like excre- 

 ment was really a spider which held the butterfly in 

 its grasp. Even after this experience he was again 

 deceived by the same species in Sumatra. 



There are several extremely ant-like spiders, and 

 it is remarkable that some of the imitators belong to 

 widely different spider families: that is to say the 

 resemblance has arisen independently from quite 

 different starting points. 



