COMPOSITE SNARES AND SECTORAL ORBS. 



141 



It is certainly interesting to find these Orbweavers possessing in so 

 marked a degree tlie spinning liabit of the tribe most closely related to 

 themselves in general structural characteristics, although it may 



Affinities. , , -i i . 



not be possible to 



munity of habit and the com 

 of these snares and their weav 

 the weavers of the Retitelarian 

 hereafter when I come to con 

 of the Basilica spider; but it 

 that they both possess very de- 

 cidedly the Epeiroid character- 

 istics. 



In the meantime, there is 

 another interesting peculiarity 

 of Triaranea's web vvhicli 

 needs to be noted, namely, the 

 bell shaped den or tent of 

 white silk hung amidst the 

 maze (Fig. 131), and connect- 

 ed with the trapline. A .struct- 

 ure of this kind, within which 

 the spider constantly dwells, is 

 not confined to this species. 

 Many Orbweavers have a sim- 

 ilar tent or some flossy uphol- 

 stered crevice, bole, or leafy 

 nest, within whicli they con- 

 ceal themselves frequently or 

 habitually. Triaranea often 

 shows a remarkable addition 

 to this ordinary bell shaped 

 tent. There is an open and 

 quite distinct tube attached^ to 

 the movith of the 

 tent, from which it 

 to the centre of the 

 free radius is fasten 

 runs through or along the floor 

 ally kept taut, and is clasped 

 fore feet of the spider. This 

 feet, shortened, or even wbol 

 ly found as in Fig. 132. In 



Tube- 

 weaving 

 Tendency 



trace a close relation between the com- 

 munity of structure. The affinity 

 ers with the spinningwork and 

 tribe will be more fully traced 

 sider the Domed orbweb 

 may be here remarked 



Fl< 



131. Asnareof Epeira 

 triaranea, showing the 

 looped spirals and elon- 

 gated lower part of the 

 orb. 



reaches almost 

 orb to which the 

 ed. The free radius 

 of this tube, is continu- 

 at the upper end by the 

 gangway is at times imi)er- 

 ly omitted, but is f requent- 



this bell shaped den and 

 connecting tube one may see a germ or modification or suggestion of the 

 typical snare of the tribe of Tubeweavers. We thus see that our spider 



