Members in Spiders and Insects. 42,9 



July 27. Has spun filaments from many of the branches. 



29. More filaments. Another fly. No hunting propensities. 



30. A very considerable quantity of web below the end of the 



twig, enough to form a tube sufficient to receive the spider, 

 and ramifying in several directions, with many long con- 

 necting filaments to different branches., On the 12th of 

 August another limb was removed, reducing the number 

 to two, and the web cleaned out : even then enough web 

 was spun to cover the spider imperfectly, and occasionally 

 to entangle an exhausted fly. On the 20th of September 

 it died. 



5. 



Epeira ^ First leg taken off on the 3d of August, and last on 



the 7th : the first on the right side, and the second and last 

 on the left, remaining. W^eb cleared out. 

 On the following day filaments appeared in several directions. These 

 were constantly added to, and by the 20th a geometrical web was formed 

 equally perfect, but more sparing in quantity than one made by a spider 

 of the same species, and precisely under the same mode of confinement, 

 but healthy and immutilated : the entanglement and taking of flies, and 

 the conduct of the two spiders was in every respect similar : they were 

 confined in large glass jars, and a branch put into each. 



I tried tlie experiment upon four other individuals, and the results were 

 equally satisfactory and conclusive. It was my intention not only to have 

 detailed these also, but to have pursued the inquiry still further, feeling 

 that nothing but weight of evidence on my part would be entitled to 

 prevail against such authorities as a Banks, a Leach, and a Kirby ; but 

 I am fortunately saved further trouble, at least for the present, by the 

 following extract from Mr. Samouelle's " Entomologist's Compendium," 

 p. 120, (which I happened to meet with since 1 commenced writing the 

 present paper, and which I conclude to be a verbatim extract from the 

 original communication in the Linnean Transactions, although he does 

 not say so) for it may, I think, be readily made to convict itself, and to 

 disprove, by its details, the assertion with which it starts, that " from a 

 ** web-spinning it became a hunting spider." 



" They (spiders) have likewise the power of reproducing their legs r 



