1899] ENTOMOLOGICAL XEWS. o;-, 



incorporated into its margin. Two grass leaves were brought 

 down iron i a plant near by and festooned lo two sides, the I'm 

 ishing touch being a dagger-pointed bur poised on the margin. 

 By tlie time several nests were examined I found e\ idence of 

 the most whimsical tastes in the selection of material for nests, 

 an enumeration of which is here given : 



(ireen and dried grass leaves, dried line sedges, spikes and 

 leaves of foxtail grass, fibrous roots, ragweed leaves curved by 

 drying, cenchrus or burgrass spikes and burs, wing of beetle. 

 \veatlier beaten white paper, piece of brown st ring, twi^s of va 

 rious kinds in bits, dark bark, seeds of weeds, bird excrement, 

 sand made into pellets, small stones and gravel from soil. 



Exploring the tubes with a straw was not without reward, 

 for I found b\ feeling the way down carefully, until meeting 

 resistance, the live spider when touched communicates a mo 

 tion to the straw sticking above the ground . To learn more of 

 the occupant one has but to dig a hole down at Hie side to 

 avoid injuring the castle, then making an undercut below ex- 

 tending to the tube; follow it down to the bottom where the 

 spider rests with its head pointing upwards. The Kail of the 

 year finds various si/ed individuals of different ages prepar- 

 ing to pass the winter in burrows. Sometimes just within the 

 castle a tine screen of silk is woven across I he entrance as an 

 obstruction against Hoods or the possible entering of hymenop 

 terous enemies, which is again torn awa\ after all danger is 

 passed. 



The young, even down lo the smallest, show a wonderful in 

 stinct for castle building. This I saw depicted in tin- dainty 

 character of many of their works. Activity is expressed on 

 every side at thisperiod of the year. Lilt leyellow sand pellets 

 encircling the openings told plainly lhat I he spider's year is 

 nearing a close. They had a forewarning of the coming win 

 ter and sought refuge by deepening their retreats to get safel\ 

 below the free/ing line. The love of warmth \\ as exemplilied 

 even after the first fall of MIO\\ . for 1 he a p pea ranee of t he \\ a rm 

 sun's rays enticed them to come up lo get a last glimpscof the 

 sun from the top of the caslle. Krom what I gleaned, old 

 spiders live in their burrows for more than a season and often 

 remodel them after being injured by storms. The\ hold great 

 fondness for their homes and 1 rv resolutel\ lo slick b\ them. 



