Superfamily Argiopoidea 



with a brownish middle line; the abdomen is yellowish brown 

 with many small black flecks. 



This species is widely distributed in the warmer parts of our 

 country. It is a house-spider. I found it in a web like that of 

 Theridion in corners of outbuildings in Florida. The web is 

 very light. 



Genus PS I LOCHORUS (Psil-o-cho'rus) 



The four anterior eyes are nearly contiguous and are in a 

 procurved line; the posterior row is also slightly procurved. The 

 chelicerae of the male are armed on the outer margin with a long 

 curved tooth. 



Only one species occurs in the United States. 



Psilocborus pullulus (P. pul'lu-lus). — The length of the body 

 is about one tenth inch. The cephalothorax and legs are yellow; 

 the eyes are surrounded with black, and there is a forked black 

 mark behind the eyes. The abdomen is gray. In the male 

 there is on the outer margin of the chelicera near the base a strong 

 curved tooth. The abdomen is very greatly arched and pro- 

 jects far behind the spinnerets. 



Family THERIDIIDiE (Ther-i-di'i-dae) 



The Comb-footed Spiders 



The most common of all 

 house-spiders, the one that 

 most often spins a tangled 

 maze of threads in the cor- 

 ners of neglected rooms, is 

 Theridion tepidariorum, a 

 representative of the typical 

 genus of this family; this 

 spider will serve well, there- 

 fore, as an example of the 



Fig. 321. THERIDION TEPIDARIORUM r ., /T ^. N 



family (Fig. 321). 

 The comb-footed spiders are, with some exceptions, sedentary 

 spiders which spin webs to catch their prey and in which to place 

 their egg-sacs. Their webs are composed of threads extending 



330 



