Urquhabt, — On New Species of Araneidea. 101 



Ldnyphia melanopygia, Cambr. 



Female. — Ceph. tb., long, 1. Abd., long, 1*4. Legs, 1-4, 

 2,3 = 8-9, 3-5, 2-5 mm. 



Ceplialothorax yellow-brown, suffused with olive-green, few 

 bristly hairs on forepart of caput ; oval, slightly compressed 

 forwards ; median fovea rounded in front, somewhat pointed 

 behind, normal grooves moderate ; contour of profile moderately 

 arched backwards from ocular area ; clypem projects forwards, 

 in height nearly equals depth of facial space. 



Hind-centrals and lateral eyes have a pearly lustre, large, 

 of nearly equal size ; posterior row slightly procurved, hiud- 

 centrals rather more than their diameter fi'om posterior laterals, 

 more than that distance from anterior-centrals, rather less than 

 their breadth from each other ; fore-centrals smallest of eight, 

 dark, rather less than their diameter from one another, and 

 from fore-laterals ; side eyes largest of eight, placed obliquely 

 on low tubercles, nearly contiguous. 



Legs moderately slender, 1-4 about equal in length ; 

 brownish-yellow ; armature stiff black hairs, few fine spines, 

 except on metatarsi; superior tarsal claws — 1st pair slight, but 

 somewhat even curve from base, about 8 close fine teeth ; inferior 

 claw long, fine, curved, free, and projects outwards, 1 tooth. 



Palpi have an olivaceous hue, armed with hairs, few strong 

 spines, digital joint terminates with a rather stout point. 



Falces stronger than femoral joint of 1st pair of legs, pro- 

 minent at base in fi-ont, somewhat attenuated at extremities, 

 which are divergent, strong teeth ; cocolorous to cephalothorax. 



MaxillcB stout, obtusely pointed, inclined towards labium, 

 do not possess characteristic conical eminences of male, strong 

 bristles project from usual slight eminences, colour of falces. 



Lahium broader than long, brown-black. 



Sternum broad-cordate, dark-brown. 



Abdomen oval, base squarely truncated, moderately notched ; 

 dark orange-red, sparsely clothed with coarse dark hairs, broad 

 black ring round spinners, which are yellowish. Epiyyne repre- 

 sents a prominent blackish hood, concave within, centrally 

 produced into a semicircular band, attached to integument on 

 posterior side. 



The male is described by the Eev. 0. P. Cambridge in the 

 " Proc. Zool. Society," 1879, from an imperfect example in Mr. 

 A. S. Atkinson's collection, probably from Nelson. Eelative 

 length oi leys 1, 4, 2, 3; 1-4 nearly equal in length. Both in 

 form and coloration it resembles the female. Specimens may 

 be found about loose debris, under old bags, etc. ; the female 

 constructs a fair sized horizontal web, with a fine close mesh. 

 Mature examples are to be found throughout the year. 



Te Karaka, Auckland, ^.r.C7. 



