Mr. J. Blackwall on newly discovered species of Araneidea. 429 



point ; it is convex and hairy externally, concave within, except 

 at the compact extremity, and comprises the palpal organs ; 

 these organs are moderately developed, complex in structure, 

 with a strong, curved process on the inner side, extending to 

 their extremity, a long and very prominent one directed outwards 

 from the centre, which is enlarged and rounded at its extremity 

 and has a protuberance on its anterior side, and are of a dark 

 reddish-brown colour. The abdomen is long, slender, and some- 

 what cylindrical, tapering a little to the spinners ; it is sparingly 

 clothed with short, light greyish hairs, projects slightly over the 

 base of the cephalo-thorax, and is of a green colour; on each 

 side of the medial line of the upper part there is an obscure 

 whitish band, on which oblique oval spots, of a pale brown hue, 

 inclined towards each other, occur in pairs ; and a short, longi- 

 tudinal, pale brown streak is comprised in the anterior part of 

 the space bounded by the bands; the branchial opercula are 

 tinged with pale brown ; a white line extends from each, along 

 the under part, to the spinners, and the space included between 

 them is densely freckled with white. 



This handsome spider, which was comprised in a collection of 

 Araneidea made in Algeria by John Gray, Esq. of Bolton, and 

 the Rev. Hamlet Clark, in the summer of 1856, and most libe- 

 rally presented to me by those gentlemen, appears to be most 

 nearly allied to the species belonging to the genus Philodromus 

 by its organization ; but its habits and oeconomy are not known. 

 A striking resemblance to certain species of the genus Sphasus 

 may also be observed in the disposition of its eyes. 



Genus Sparassus, Walck. 



Sparassus currax. 



Length of the male /o^^^ ^^ ^^ ^^^^ > length of the cephalo- 

 thorax ^ ; breadth \ ; breadth of the abdomen J-^ ; length of 

 a leg of the second pair 1/^; length of a leg of the third 



pair! 2V 



The legs are long, provided with hairs and sessile spines, and 

 have a yellowish-brown hue tinged with red ; the second pair is 

 the longest, then the fourth, and the third pair is the shortest ; 

 the metatarsi and tarsi are supplied on their inferior surface 

 with numerous dark brown hair-like papillae constituting a 

 climbing apparatus; and each tarsus is terminated by two 

 curved, pectinated claws. The palpi resemble the legs in colour, 

 with the exception of the extremity of the radial joint, from 

 which a long, slightly curved, pointed apophysis projects on the 

 outer side, and the oblong-oval digital joint, which are of a very 

 dark brown colour, faintly tinged with red ; the latter is convex 



