166 C. H. TURNER 



few days a few of these eggs had turned yellow and had begun 

 to shrivel into angular shapes. 



The night following the laying of these eggs, the false-spider 

 came to the surface and fed. The next morning she was resting 

 in a depression of the ground. For several nights thereafter 

 she fed as usual; but did not construct any more burrows. She 

 spent the day in some depression of the ground. On the night 

 of the twelfth she fed heartily; on the morning of the thirteenth 

 she was dead. 



In both color and size the eggs of our American Eremobates 

 formicaria are similar to those of the Indian Galeodes studied 

 by Hutton (11, 15), but the habits of the mothers are not iden- 

 tical. After laying her eggs in the burrow, the Indian Galeodes 

 rests quietly among them. After they have hatched, she guards 

 the burrow and prevents any intruder from harming her chil- 

 dren. Our American Eremobates formicaria digs a new burrow 

 each night, and lays a second batch of eggs before the first has 

 had time to hatch. Nothing in her behavior suggests that she 

 guards her young from danger. 



A 



CONCLUSIONS 



1. The American Eremobates formicaria constructs its burrow 

 in the same manner as does the Indian Galeodes studied by 

 Hutton; but instead of using a common burrow throughout the 

 breeding season, the female constructs a new one almost every 

 night. 



2. The female of this species is nocturnal in her habits, re- 

 maining in her burrow all day. On retiring to her burrow and 

 in departing therefrom, she usually closes the mouth with dirt. 



3. She feeds voraciously upon a large variety of insects, 

 which she secures by chasing them, or by lying in wait until 

 they come to within striking distance of her powerful jaws. 



4. Like the Indian Galeodes studied by Hutton, this false- 

 spider eats solid food. Aided by the scissors-saw-like move- 

 ments of her powerful jaws she pulpifies and devours all parts 

 of the captured insects except the chitin. 



vS. Normally this species feeds upon live insects; but she may 

 be enticed to feed upon recently killed insects that are arti- 

 ficially induced to move. Ability to move seems the main 



