HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



133 



Epeira' s there are three, aud in a Cinijlo's four. I 

 am aware that the Lycosidce do not ordinarily spin 

 webs; but various specimens of Lycosa piratica, 

 which I kept in an aquarium, spun little patches of 

 web on the glass. 



.Vig. 89, x 40 diams. One first spinneret, and the second 

 pair of spinnerets of Epeira diadema. {a a) common 

 spinning-tabes ; (A A) large spinning- tubes ; (c c) ducts 

 leading to the glands of large tubes (A) of first spinneret; 

 (d) duct leading to gland of the large tube (A) of second 

 spinneret ; (e e) some of the glands and ducts of the common 

 spinning-tubes. 



In those webs which appear to contain but two 

 threads I am inclined to think that the missing 

 thread is to be lookedTfoi^in the cocoon; for tin's 

 reason. I have always wondered how it is that 

 spiders manage to spin their cocoons of so close a 

 texture in such a short space of time. A water 

 spider which I was keeping in a bell-glass, very 



1 kindly solved the mystery. This particular spider 

 took a fancy to live outside the water instead of in 

 it, and not being able to stand on the perpendicular 

 glass, she spun a small patch of close-textured web 

 as a holdfast. On examining the centre part of this 

 patch, it appeared, both to the naked eye and with a 

 microscope, just like a piece of the cocoon. Certain 

 broad threads at the edge of the patch at once 



a >4hk 







Fig. 90. One third spinneret of Epeira diadema. (a) conimos 

 spinning-tubes; (A) large spinning-tubes. The Glands,— C; 

 (e) cteca ov gland-tube; (/) glandular epithelium ; (g) the 

 outer skin of the gland ; (A) duct; (</) ducts belonging to 

 the two large spinning-tubes (A) x -10 diams. 



explained the method by which this close and even 

 texture of the cocoon is obtained. They are repre- 

 sented by fig.87(V) as they appear under a microscope. 

 Remembering how a garden spider winds its prey 

 in a silken covering, I at once understood that they 

 are produced by the spider erecting, or placing 

 parallel to its neighbour, each separate spinning- 

 tube, so that the threads which they give out do 

 not touch, instead of directing their tips towards 



