undescribed Genera and Species o/'Araneidae. 191 



present another striking instance of propinquity between the 

 Inequitelce and Orbitelce; a connexion which is further esta- 

 blished by the mixed character of their ceconomy. 



Tribe, Orbited, ) LatreiUe 

 Genus, Linyphia, J 



Linyphia minuta. 



Cephalothorax glossy, inversely heart-shaped, prominent 

 before, with an indentation in the medial line of the posterior 

 region, and of a dark-brown colour. Pectus heart-shaped, 

 and very dark-brown, approaching to black. Mandibles 

 strong, vertical, and of a dark red-brown hue. Maxillae 

 straight, nearly quadrate, having the exterior angle at the apex 

 curvilinear. Lip short, and semicircular. The colour of these 

 organs is the same as that of the mandibles. Legs and palpi 

 long, slender, and supplied with numerous delicate spines ; 

 they are reddish-brown with brownish-black bands. First 

 pair of legs the longest, then the second, the third pair being 

 the shortest ; the two superior tarsal claws are pectinated, and 

 the inferior one is inflected near its base. Each palpus is ter- 

 minated by a single claw, slightly curved and pectinated. The 

 four intermediate eyes form a trapezoid whose shortest side 

 is in front; the other four are disposed in pairs on the sides 

 of the trapezoid, the eyes constituting each pair being con- 

 tiguous, and placed obliquely on an eminence ; the two pos- 

 terior eyes of the trapezoid are the largest, and the two an- 

 terior ones the smallest of the eight. Abdomen oval, convex 

 above, projecting over the base of the cephalothorax, and 

 thinly clad with hair; the upper part is pale-brown minutely 

 spotted with yellowish-white; along the middle extends a 

 series of strongly marked, brownish-black angular lines with 

 their vertices directed forwards, and a little above the spinners 

 is an irregular, transverse, semicircular line of a yellowish- 

 white colour: the sides are brownish-black with a slightly 

 curved line of yellowish-white, extending from the anterior 

 part rather more than half-way towards the spinners ; under- 

 neath, the abdomen is of a brownish-black colour, and the 

 plates of the spiracles are yellowish-white. 



Length, from the anterior part of the cephalothorax to the 

 extremity of the abdomen, ^th of an inch ; length of the cepha- 

 lothorax T X T ; breadth ^; breadth of the abdomen T l 7 ; length 

 of an anterior leg ^V 



The body of the male is smaller and more slender than 

 that of the female, but the legs are longer, an anterior one 

 measuring /^ths of an inch. The third and fourth joints of 

 the palpi are short and strong; the fifth has two conical pro- 



