Oct. 1, 1870.] 



HARDWICIE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



239 



but usually of a faint cream - coloured ground, 

 mottled and clouded in some cases with red-brown, 

 and in others spotted with dark brown spots, sonic 

 of considerable size." — 67. II. H. 



Singular Death of a Spider.— There are 

 sundry individuals claiming the name of Arunea 

 domestica, who spread their webs in an outhouse on 

 my premises, and to whom, by special charter, I 

 have secured immunity from the attacks of brooms. 

 In return for their philanthropic efforts in reducing 

 the number of inspct annoyances, I reward them 

 occasionally with a fat blow-fly, having first removed 

 one wing, for it is rarely that a spider can succeed in 

 mastering one of these insects when he is in full 

 vigour, and with all his members in action. Placing 

 a fly on a web the other day, after the usual pre- 

 liminary struggle, the spider had seized the fly by 

 the thorax, and was "holding on," when it suddenly 

 quitted the prey, turned short round, and remained 

 motionless. The fly, thus liberated, moved slowly 

 across the web. Never having observed that 

 spiders were given to fits of meditation, I was at a 

 loss to understand the conduct of this individual. 

 I blew smartly upon it; still it remained motionless. 

 I might have supposed that it was feigning death, 

 but the legs were extended, a posture never assumed 

 by the spider when alarmed. I removed it from 

 the web, and left it for some minutes. Returning 

 to it, I found it still motionless, and upon examina- 

 tion, it was evidently quite dead, though there was 

 a slight twitching in some of the legs. How to 

 account for this almost instantaneous death was 

 the query. _ I fancied there might be something 

 poisonous in the fly which had affected the spider. 

 Securing it, I handed it over to another spider, 

 which speedily disposed of it, receiving no harm 

 apparently^ Though I could perceive no wound on 

 the body of the defunct spider, I imagine that it 

 must have, by accident, given itself a puncture with 

 one of its fangs, and thus ended its life like the 

 engineer who was " hoisted with his own petard." — 

 J. R. S. C. 



Caterpillar oe Emperor Moth. — In this 

 species I have observed that caterpillars which, when 

 young, appear to be of nearly the same size, will arrive 

 at mature proportions at very different times, though 

 fed similarly, and kept in the same temperature. 

 Similar instances have been noticed amongst other 

 moths : the butterflies generally appear to be more 

 uniform, though occasionally some of the autumn 

 brood of the caterpillars of the Large White will , 

 live on through the winter, when the remainder I 

 have become pupae. But with the Emperor larvae 

 it is especially observable that out of a number in 

 feeding, a few will live on for a month or more after 

 the rest have completed their cocoons. Individuals 

 received from the north of England, even when fed i 

 up in the London district, are much slower in their 

 growth than southern specimens, nor do they attain 

 the same size. The caterpillar of the Emperor ap- j 

 pears to thrive best upon willows in confinement, 

 though most frequently found at large feeding upon 

 heather. The hawthorn, which they will eat, and 

 on which they are sometimes taken, develops 

 rather stunted individuals. They will eat also 

 oak and _ blackthorn. Instinct, we hear it some- 

 times said, is an unerring guide. It is scarcely 

 so in matters which require foresight, though re- 

 markable in the power of adapting means to a pre- 

 sent end. Thus the caterpillar of the Emperor 

 forms its cocoon after a certain model, and would 



keep as near this as possible, however limited as to 

 space, and the unadhesivc nature of the substance 

 to which it had to be attached. Yet, in a breeding- 

 cage, two larva? formed their cocoons in close 

 proximity, but with the apex of one directly opposed 

 to the apex of the other, separated only by a space 

 of a few lines. The necessary consequence (were 

 these left undisturbed) would be that at the time of 

 emergence neither moth could extricate itself, and 

 each would die imprisoned in its cocoon. — 



j. r. s. a 



Lacewing Fly {Chrysopa perla).— While turn- 

 ing over some back numbers of Science-Gossip, I 

 came upon a notice of the Lacewing Fly (vol. v. 

 p. 15), in which it is stated that this fly emits, on 

 being captured, a strong pungent odour. I have 

 twice captured Chrysopa, but on neither occasion 

 did I perceive the slightest odour. Of the insect's 

 identity I can have no doubt ; it arswered exactly 

 to the description given by Mr. Ward in the article 

 to which I refer. One of my captives, too, laid the 

 curious stalked eggs for which this species is 

 remarkable. Is it likely that the power of emitting 

 this odour belongs to those insects only at certain 

 seasons, or only to the males ?_ It will be observed 

 that one, at least, of my captives was a female. — 

 A. J. 31. A. 



Borage (p. 212).— There can be little doubt that 

 the hairy leaves of this plant have given it its name. 

 The Italian borra, French bourre, signifies the hair 

 of animals, flocks of wool, &c. Compare the English 

 burr. I am surprised to find that Hooker and 

 Arnott (" British Flora," p. 290) derive the word 

 from cor and ago, or more directly from Borrach, 

 a courageous or noble person, in Celtic ! — /. C. 

 Rust. 



Bee-elower. — There is a species of the Orchis, 

 where Nature has formed a bee, apparently feeding 

 in the breast of the flower, with so much exactness 

 that it is impossible at a very small distance to dis- 

 tinguish the imposition. Hence the plant derives 

 its name, and is called the Bee-flower. Langhorne 

 elegautly notices its appearance : — 



" See on that flowret's velvet breast. 

 How close the busy vagrant lies ! 

 His thin-wrought plume, his downy breast, 

 The ambrosial gold that swells his thighs. 



" Perhaps his fragrant load may bind 



His limbs ;— we'll set the captive free — 

 I sought the Livint. Bee to find, 

 And found the Picture of a Bee." 



The late Mr. Jackson, of Exeter, wrote to me on 

 this subject : — " This orchis is common near our 

 sea-coasts, but instead of being exactly like a bee, 

 it is not like it at all. It has a general resemblance 

 to a Jiff, and by the help of imagination may be sup- 

 posed to be a fly pitched upon the flower." An 

 ingenious botanist, after reading this article, was so 

 kind as to send me specimens of the Jiff orchis [0. 

 muscifera) and of the bee orchis (0. apifera). Their 

 resemblance to these insects when in full flower is 

 the most perfect conceivable ; they are distinct 

 plants. The poetical eye of Langhorne was equally 

 correct and fanciful ; and that too of Jackson, who 

 differed so positively. Many controversies have 

 been carried on, from a want of a little more know- 

 ledge : like that of the bee orchis and the,//// orchis, 

 both parties prove to be right. — D' 'Israeli's Curio- 

 sities of_ Literature, vol. i., " Natural Productions 

 resembling Artificial Compositions."— ii!. T., M.J. 



