Urquhart, — On the Spiders of New Zealand. 193 



posteriorly, creamy color, brown marks ; ventral surface light- 

 brown. Vulva moderately prominent, circular, concave within, 

 on posterior side are two black cone-like processes, apices 

 directed backwards. Branchial opercula resemble yellowish 

 cup-shaped calyces, acute apices directed towards genital organ. 

 Te Karaka, Auckland, A.T.Jj. 



Theridium cruciferum, sp. n. Plate VII., fig. 5. 



Length of an adult female 5 mm., of an adult male 4 mm. 



Cephalothorax broad oval, slightly compressed before, glossy, 

 light-brown ; median baud and marginal zone dark-brown ; 

 median indentation circular, strife moderate ; profile line rises 

 from thoracic junction at an angle of 20°, then slopes across 

 caput. Clypeus moderately prominent, in height about two- 

 thirds depth of ocular area. 



Eyes on dark spots, four central nearly form a square, 

 anterior pair dark, seated on prominences ; posterior pair rather 

 more than their diameter apart, and closer to each other than 

 each is to the hind-lateral next to it ; laterals placed on 

 tubercles, nearly contiguous. 



Legs long, slender, 1, 4, 2, 3 ; first pair dark, ii., hi., iv., 

 yellowish, speckled as far as tarsi, brown annuli at articulation 

 of joints ; furnished with few hairs and erect bristles ; superior 

 tarsal claws, 1st pair, 8 comb-teeth increasing in length and 

 strength ; inferior claw nearly equals superior in strength, 1 

 strong tooth. 



Palpi pale yellow, slender, armature of legs ; palpal claw 6 

 teeth, increasing in length and strength. 



Falces conical, nearly vertical, chocolate-brown, few teeth. 



Maxilla long, somewhat roundly truncated on outer side, in- 

 clined towards labium, which is broader than long, rounded ; 

 these parts have a greenish-yellow tinge. 



Sternum broad cordate, rugulose, stained round margins and 

 spotted with purple-brown. 



Abdomen oviform, convex, pointed at spinners ; ground-colour 

 olive-brown ; on dorsal surface there is a large brownish-black, 

 nearly ovate, indented leaf-like mark ; on the fore part there is 

 in some examples a well-defined cross, the base of which is 

 creamy- white, margined with black, and directed forwards ; re- 

 maining portions purple, picked out with whitish lines ; between 

 cross and spinners are several creamy spots throwing off oblique 

 purple lines ; lateral margins have several creamy, purple- 

 spotted bands, and oblique dark bars ; round spinners, and on 

 ventral surface, are creamy purple- spotted marks. Vulva yel- 

 lowish-brown, transversely wrinkled, oval eminence, concave 

 within ; projecting from anterior side, directed backwards, is 

 a short tapering process, labia form ; on posterior side, a dark, 

 tumid, projecting lip, partially cleft in centre. 



13 



