xi] THERAPHOSID SPIDERS 93 



of brown sand, evidently obtained from the bottom 

 of the burrow and not from the surrounding surface. 

 But in the case of some newly-dispersed young spiders 

 he was able to see this operation performed. The 

 first part of the nest to be made was the aerial 

 portion, at the foot of which the digging was com- 

 menced. Particles of sand were brought up in the 

 jaws of the young spider and pushed into the weft 

 of the tube. Occasionally the jaws were thrust 

 through the delicate web and particles from without 

 were seized and pulled into the silken fabric. 



It is sad to have to relate that such young spiders 

 as did not emerge from the web within a reasonable 

 time were devoured by their unnatural parent. It 

 sometimes happened that a change of weather ren- 

 dered it unsuitable for the departure of the young, 

 and in this case the mother closed up the exit-hole, 

 and retired to feed upon her offspring ! Thus, though 

 there were as many as a hundred and forty in a 

 brood, a good many perished at the outset, and the 

 ants in the surrounding soil accounted for some of 

 the rest. 



The Atypidae form a small outlying group of the 

 Theraphosid spiders and are able to live in colder 

 regions than most of their relatives. The great bulk 

 of the division belong to the family Aviculariidae. 



Some of the Aviculariidae are not unlike Agelena 

 in their mode of life, spinning a dense sheet-web 



