1897.] Notes, 325 



ARTHROPODS. 

 Battle between Wasp and Spider. 



It -must be thirty years ago— and I suppose it was because the house- 

 maid did not do her duty — but at any rate a big spider— the largest of our 

 spiders, I think, with a handsomely marked abdomen — made its web 

 right across the plate-glass panel of the inside door of our entrance hall 

 at Fassaroe. She was a really handsome specimen, and we used to 

 feed her with house flies which were caught instantly, big blue-bottles 

 too were made short work of. This was such a voracious spider that it 

 occurred to me one day to catch a live wasp and throw it into the web. 



The wasp was unhurt, and the spider was as usual at " attention " in 

 the centre of the web. The wasp hit the upper outside margin, and I 

 will never forget what happened ; it buzzed furiously, and one or two 

 threads broke. The spider was agitated, but appeared instantly to 

 realise the situation. She made a dart about an inch sideways, then 

 took a rapid sweep past the wasp, going within an inch and threw out 

 with a jerk a sort of lasso which caught the wasp by the leg or wing (I 

 forget which). 



The wasp buzzed and tore and bit the web frantically; the spider 

 returned to the centre, the web again broke, and the wasp was nearly 

 free, but once more the great spider took another sweep past the wasp, 

 going almost within half-an-inch, and threw out another lasso which 

 bothered the wasp greatly, and he fell against one of the mainstays or 

 hawsers which supported the whole fabric. 



The spider with body erect appeared to be listening or watching, then 

 with a bound she went right round the wasp without touching it and 

 tangled both wings. For a moment the buzzing ceased, and this 

 symptom of defeat caused the spider to rush directly at the wasp and to 

 tangle him still more. Threads seemed now to be made as if by magic 

 and in less than a minute the wasp was rolled up like a mummy, partly 

 by the spider going round it, but chiefly owing to a rotatory motion 

 given to the M^asp by the spider's legs. The spider did not cease until 

 the covering was so thick that the wasp resembled a whitish-grey 

 chrysalis, for not a particle of the original insect could be seen. 



The encounter was most exciting, and though it ended in the defeat, 

 and capture of the wasp, I don't think this would have been possible 

 save for the apparent power possessed by the spider of lassoing a 

 dangerous enemy by shooting out its glutinous threads by a sort of 

 centrifugal jerk when sweeping past its victim. 



A day or two after I tried a bumble bee in the web, but it was too 

 heavy, and, the meshes giving way, it escaped. 



This note is written because it would appear from the Zoologist of the 

 current month that the wasp v. spider controversy is not yet settled. 



Richard M. Barbington. 



