Patterson] A STUDY OF SPIDERS 267 



The summary of this lesson is as follows: The house-spider 

 has eight legs. The legs are made up of segments. The front 

 legs are very much longer than the other legs. The body is 

 divided into two parts. The front part is the cephalo-thorax 

 and the hinder part the abdomen. The abdomen is very much 

 larger than the cephalo-thorax. It is round — almost a sphere. 

 The legs are all attached to the cephalo-thorax. The small 

 foot -like projections in front are called palps, and belong to the 

 mouth. The two small cylinder-like bodies between the palps 

 are the mandibles or jaws. (This spider is too small for the 

 children to make a detailed study of the eyes or spinnerets although 

 some child will probably discover small eyes on the front of the 

 head.) 



Some of the children are certain to report that they have found 

 a different kind of spider about the home. Its web is not at all 

 like that of the round bodied house-spider. The threads seem 

 woven together to form a sort of sheet. In one corner is a smooth 

 tunnel-like opening. The children are told that the spider that 

 makes this kind of a web is called a funnel weaver. The next 

 assignment is to look for webs of these spiders, and if possible, 

 to capture one of the owners. Several days should elapse before 

 reports are called for. Often some child will find a funnel web 

 near the school building and may conduct members of the class 

 to the spot for study. 



Reports of the Funnel Web Study — The funnel webs are found 

 in corners of cellars and attics, often in front of windows. They 

 are very numerous in grassy places. Some are found in fence 

 corners; others in low shrubs. 



The webs are flat sheets made of a great number of threads 

 woven together. They are anchored like tents with guy ropes, 

 some attached to supports above, some at the sides and some 

 below. The tube-like opening is in one end, usually slanting 

 downward. Sometimes it ends in an opening in the ground; 

 sometimes in a knot-hole in a board or post; sometimes in a 

 crevice in the wall or between window sashes. The spider sits 

 in the tunnel and when disturbed, rushes quickly down this slant- 

 ing staircase. When an insect alights on the web she rushes out, 

 captures it and descends her staircase to hide away while she eats 

 it. 



