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THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY, 



It is possible that, as with the Nephila plumipes, the young males 

 of Ilyptiotes construct nets, but of this I can say nothing ; for as yet 

 I have never seen what I was certain were the eggs or the very 

 young. Near Ithaca I have found the partly-grown spiders, during 

 the latter part of July, and the adults are all gone before the close of 

 November. Certain little cocoons (Fig. 4), which are quite abundant 

 in the same localities and upon the hemlock-twigs, may prove to be 

 made by this spider, but at present all is conjecture. 



Fig. 4. Supposed Cocoon (Egg-Case) of Triangle Spider. 



A, the cocoon, of natural size, hung by thread-lines between hemlock-twigs ; B, the cocoon 



enlarged, seen obliquely, so as to show the triangular base. 



The form of these cocoons is quite peculiar: it is that of a little 

 sphere flattened upon one side; at three points the border of this flat 

 side is extended into strong lines, by which the cocoon is suspended 

 between the twigs. Its diameter is about one-tenth of an inch, but 

 the lines are often two or three inches long. The ground-color is 

 usually white ; but there are always a few black specks, and some- 

 times these cover so large a portion of the surface as to make the 

 cocoon appear gray or nearly black. 



Besides these more common cocoons, the hemlock-twigs sometimes 

 bear others of about the same size, but pear-shaped, and hanging by 

 the smaller end upon a single short line. To identify these, the spi- 

 ders should be taken in September, and kept in captivity upon hem- 

 lock-branches, so that they may make their cocoons. 



