CHAPTER XL 



COLOR AND THE COLOR SENSE. 



The popular impression that spiders are extremely ugly is deeply 

 seated. Even specialists in other branches of natural history are apt to ex- 

 press surprise when one speaks of high ornamentation among araneads. 

 Butterflies are commonly thought to have special claims to beauty, and 

 without disputing these one may truthfully say that as fair and brilliant 

 colors may be found among the Araneie as among the Lepidoptera. I 

 suppose the popular impression to the contrary is largely due to the fact 

 that the spiders which frequent our cellars and outhouses, and straggle 

 occasionally inside our homes, belong to the genera whose colors are 

 rather inconspicuous. Possibly, contact with human beings has tended to 

 demoralize these species, and thus disrobe them of colors which once may 

 have made them attractive ! 



I. 



One does not need to go to the tropics for examples of richly colored 

 spiders. Our indigenous Orbweavers furnish species whose coloring may 

 well challenge the admiration of lovers of the beautiful. This 

 . will be abundantly illustrated by the i^lates prejmred for Volume 



Colors ^^^- °^ ^^^^^ work, but several examples are presented in this 

 volume, as those on Plates L and IV. Our two indigenous spe- 

 cies of Argiope have bright colors, Cophinaria being at once distinguished 

 by her size and prominent black, yellow, and brown markings, and Argy- 

 raspis adding to these a metallic white which in earlier stages of her life 

 has a noticeable lustre. 



Epeira insularis is well known among familiars of our fields b}' her 

 attractive yellow and orange colors ; and the varied and beautiful robing 

 of the Shamrock spider is well illustrated b}^ the specimens presented in 

 Plate L 



Yet these are far excelled in beauty and brilliancy by the Orchard 

 spider, and the remarkable aranead, Argiope argenteola (Plate IV., Fig. 6), 

 which is found in the southwestern portions of the United States. The 

 genus Acrosoma also presents several species whose attractive coloring makes 

 them worthy of notice in this connection, and Gasteracantha (Plate IV., 

 Fig. 8) is often well decorated. 



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