406 Transactions. — Zoology. 



The home of the genus Ophiocreas is the " continental 

 slope," all the other known species having been found 

 between 118 and 580 fathoms except 0. abyssicola, which 

 came from 2,300 fathoms. Our species probably occurs 

 plentifully in the deep water of the fiords on the south- 

 western coast of the South Island. 



Art. LII. — ^4 Hunting Spider. 



By Taylor White. 



{Read before the Uawke's Bay Philosophical Institute.] 



The very large family of predaceous insects known under the 

 title " Arachnida" includes, besides the true spiders, the mites 

 and scorpions. This classification would, to the uninitiated, 

 seem a gathering together of forms which differ very widely 

 one from the other ; and so they really do, but at the same 

 time these creatures give evidence of descent from an ances- 

 tral Arachnid which was the origin of all these remarkable 

 creatures. 



From my own observation certain true spiders are, as it 

 were, a partial copy of the scorpion ; they spin no web to 

 entangle their prey, but are provided by nature with a strong 

 pair of arms, terminated by formidable pincers, by which 

 they seize their victim. This pair of scorpion-like arms would 

 seem in a measure to resemble those of the crab, the lobster, 

 and the prawn. They are, in reality, destructive implements, 

 which take the place of the forward pair of legs, and are 

 never used to assist locomotion, but are carried elevated and 

 pointing forward on either side of the creature's head, like a 

 pair of nippers open, and ready for action. The remaining 

 three pairs of legs are solely used in giving movement and 

 stability to the body. The body consists of two main parts — 

 the shorter fore part, to which the pair of claws and the six 

 legs are attached; and the longer after part, or abdomen, 

 which is carried clear of the ground. This dreadful-looking 

 creature, if magnified two hundred times, would be a startling 

 object to meet with in a summer day's ramble, and might 

 lead to undesirable complications. The following account 

 describes their method of catching prey. 



Looking at a remarkable spider walking on the window- 

 pane, I became aware that, although seemingly stationary, it 

 in reality was stealthily on the move. Tiiis motion would 



