148 



AMERICAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNING WORK. 





all the sj^ecimens sent are attached. (Fig. ISO.) The retitelarian snare 

 which surrounds the whole doubtless serves as a temporary home for the 

 young spiders. The cocoon has no suture, and the spiderlings escape by 

 cutting the case, which is thick and closely woven. No flossy padding was 



found inside of the case. (Fig. 181.) The 

 cocoon thus resembles that made by Cit- 

 igrades generally. 



A fine, large species of Ctenus from 

 Central America, sent to me by Mr. 

 Samuel H. Scudder, carried its cocoon. 

 This was a large object, one inch and a 

 quarter long, constructed in the ordinar}' 

 manner of L3'cosid cocoons, but differ- 

 ing somewhat in sliape, being globular 

 instead of hemispherical. The mother 

 carried it for some time after she came 

 to me, and then fastened it by threads, 

 in hammock fashion, to the side of tlie 

 box wherein she was confined. Shortly 

 thereafter a large brood of spiderlings 

 appeared, spread themselves over my lab- 

 oratory table, covering the books and 

 other objects thereon with a sheet of fine 

 spinningwork. They finally built upward 

 a huge bridge like structure, a sort of 

 aranead Eiffel Tower, which touched the 

 ceiling above the table, and at another 

 point diverged to the laljoratory window. 

 Some further account of this brood, with 

 a figure of their bridge at a certain 

 stage, will be found in the subsequent 

 chapter on Cocoon Life and Babyhood. 



V. 



Fig. 180. Duplex cocoons of Pucet ia aurora, woven 

 among the blossoms of Erigonum corymbosum. 



Among Saltigrades the cocoons close- 

 ly resemble those of manj^ of tlie genus 

 Epeira. They are spun against some surface, as that of a rock or 

 tree, the eggs being overlaid by a thick blanket of white spinningwork. 

 Over this again is stretched a tent or cell of lighter structure, although 

 still of close and somewhat adhesive texture, but not so tliick as to pre- 

 vent the cocoon from being seen through it. The eggs are heaped in a 

 hemispherical mass, and are of a pinkish or light rose color. In the case 

 of Phidippus raorsitans the cocoon is from one-half to three-fourths of an 

 inch in diameter. The spider dwells within her cell, and of course close 



