102 



AMERICAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNINGWORK. 



the early spring, hanging intact upon the hushes where they had been 

 placed, although, of course, the snare had entirely disappeared. 



The Tailed spider, Cyclosa caudata, diffei's from Lahyrinthea in the 

 mode of hanging her string of egg sacs. This is suspended within the 

 limits of her orb, above the central space, along the line of the 

 ri°+* perpendicular. As the cocoons increase in number, the adjacent 

 radii and tlie connecting spirals are cut out, leaving a clear seg- 

 ment resembhng that in the snare of Zilla, in tlie middle of whicli the 

 cocoon string hangs. (Fig. 92.) The number of cocoons 

 appears to vary much ; I have usually found from three 

 five; Hentz never oljserved more tiian five.' They 

 re generally in shape a double cone, although often 

 round or roundish, and are from three-sixteenths 

 to quarter of an inch (five to seven millimetres) 

 long and one-eighth inch (three millimetres) 

 A cocoon is not composed of two dis- 

 t parts, like one of Labyrinthea's, but 

 spun in a single piece of soft yellow- 

 ish fioss, externally close enough to be 

 weatherproof, but which ravels out 

 into woolly threads when picked 



with a needle. 



Within, the sac is filled abun- 

 dantly with delicate, fiossy, yellow 

 silk, in whicli the eggs are de- 

 {)Osited. These vary in number ; 

 for example, three now before me, 

 opened in succession, contain, re- 

 spectively, twenty-two, two, and 

 ten ; certainly a remarkable differ- 

 ence. On one occasion a female 

 enclosed within a paper box began 

 to make a cocoon, but proceeded 

 no further than to weave a tiny 

 saucer, similar to that spun by Ar- 

 giope riparia. This would, there- 

 fore, api>ear to be tlie commencement of her cocoon, and it may be that 

 against sucli a disk Caudata habitually deposits her eggs before enclosing 

 them. However, I have not found this within her cocoons, as is the case 

 with Argiope's, and conclude that the disk is made the basis of the external 

 sac, into which it is woven as the spider proceeds. The cocoons are often 

 well separated upon the string, but also are found touching and even over- 



FlG. 90. Labyrinthea's snare, viewed from behind, with 

 two cocoons in site above the tubnlar nest. 



" Spiders United States," page 127. 



