252 Transactions. 



Chiracanthium stratioticum L. Koch. 



Until recently the study of spiders in New Zealand has been almost 

 entirely neglected ; and, since T was unable to ascertain the scientific name 

 of this species, I knew it as " the brown manuka-spider," a name still used 

 when Latin polysyllables sound toe pedantic. The retreat is a den of 

 transparent silk in a spray of leafy manuka. This retreat is fairly large, 

 built of smooth, white silk, and has only one opening — a neat circular hole 

 — near which sits the spider, her front legs on the edge of the orifice, ready 

 for prey. T kept a specimen for several weeks. Once she caught a house- 

 fly by chase, unaided by silk either to entangle the prey or to swathe it, 

 as does the Epeira (Araneus). However, she had stretched entanglements 

 of fine non-adhesive silk near the den, and flies were caught in these ; but 

 in no case were the flies rolled up in silk, E peira~f nskion. The wings and 

 head were disjointed or torn off. 



The Nest. — I have found this in March. Several nearly parallel manuka- 

 twigs are bound together to form a rough cylinder, by a sheet of stiff white 

 silk of very close texture. Both the top and the bottom of the cylinder 

 (length 1-2 in.) are flat and closely covered with the same material. 

 However, this close, opaque sheeting is interrupted, both above and below, 

 by a small window of jagged outline, covered with silk so thin as to be quite 

 transparent and thus serve the purpose of a pane of glass. These are the 

 loopholes of the fortress, at which, either at top or bottom, the self-iminuned 

 spider is usually to be seen watching. Disturb the window with a twig, 

 and the wildly waving legs of the female spider are immediately perceived, 

 just below the transparent covering. Thus might the ingress of an insect 

 enemy easily be prevented. Thirteen approximately parallel twigs are 

 incorporated in the structure of the cylinder-walls, and act as strengthening- 

 pillars. Between two of these uprights I cut the. fabric longitudinally, to 

 expose the contents of the nest. No sooner was a slit made than the head 

 of the spider, with extended chelicerae, appeared in the opening, ready to 

 repel invasion. A pen offered to her was attacked with great fury, the 

 spider attempting to seize the point with her very long and slender fangs. 

 She had presumably been a considerable time in the nest without food, 

 her abdomen being small and shrivelled, scarcely a third the size of a 

 specimen of equal age but lacking a nest. The egg-ball was approximately 

 spherical, and was bound tightly to the side of the nest by a silken envelope, 

 which also kept together the very large yellow eggs. I had kept this nest 

 for a week without opening it, and in that time the spider did not emerge 

 from the nest. I consider it probable that the female of this species 

 remains self-imprisoned with her eggs to guard them until they hatch, 

 when she probably dies. However, I found a nest on the 22nd March 

 which contained young, the mother being still shut in with them, and 

 exhibiting great activity in their defence. 



Philodromus rubrofrontus Urquhart. 



Of this species the generic position is uncertain, but fairly abundant 

 material is in hand for determining it. The spider itself is easily recog- 

 nized by Urquhart's description. This crab-spider inhabits manuka-bushes, 

 where its green colour renders it almost invisible. The nest, formed by 

 joining leafy manuka-twigs with silk and covering the resulting oval with 

 criss-crossed threads of fine, shining white silk, is about 1 in. long by fin, 

 wide. There is one fairly round opening on one side, clear of silk and leaves, 



