68 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [Jan., 



Care of the Young. — The mother carries the cocoon attached to her 

 spinnerets, bites it open around the equator to allow the young to 

 escape, then carries the latter upon her body for a few days. 



Parasites. — One male and six females died from the effects of an 

 endoparasitic dipterous larva. One spider contained two of these 

 parasites, the others one each. After the parasite, whose Ijulk 

 nearly equals that of the body of the spider, has eaten away 

 most of the soft parts of the spider, it emerges through a hole 

 it makes in the wall of the abdomen of the spider, and this 

 emergence kills the host. It is strange that these spiders should 

 live so long with such a huge parasite within them. A short time 

 before the parasite escapes the spider acts in a peculiar manner, 

 walking about spasmodically and often spinning aimlessly. The 

 most remarkable case of this kind was the following: ? No. 237 

 occupied July 3 in spinning a completely closed, oblong sack, with a 

 ength of 30 mm. and a greatest depth of 20 mm. This silken sack 

 was placed in the angle between two vertical walls and the roof of the 

 cage, and its contours were rounded where not in contact with the 

 glass. This completed around her, she remained in it until the evening, 

 when the large parasite emerged. An indirect explanation may l^e that 

 Ihe parasite irritateil the nervous centres governing her spinning 

 apparatus, she was thus instigated to spin, and it was merely a coin- 

 cidence that she chanced to surround herself with a sack. 



Two of the parasitic larvse which emerged I kept until they perfected 

 and developed into winged imagos. M}^ friend, Mr. Charles W. John- 

 son, identified them as Acrocerids. 



Lycosa ocreata pulchra Montg. 



Individuals observed, males: No. 91, captured May IS, killed by $ No. 186, 

 June 12; No. 110, captured May 19, killed May 31; No. 170, captured May 31, 

 killed by ^ No. 171, June 7. 



Individuals observed, females: No. 92, captured May IS, moult July 12. killed 

 July 12; No. Ill, captured May 19, killed May 31; No. 171, captured May 31, 

 escaped June 13; No. 186, captured June 10, still living; No. 317, captured 

 July 14 (then with a cocoon), died October 4. 



Moult. — On July 12 9 No. 92 was found on the floor of her cage, 

 evidently dead; she was put in alcohol, but then moved vigorously, 

 and the old skin on the dorsal side of her thorax separated off. Accord- 

 ingly she Avas in the quiescent state of a lieginning moult. The remark- 

 able point of this moult was that on June 3 she had copulated — i.e. 

 a copulation had preceded the last moult. 



Mating. — The following cases were seen : 



(1) 9 No. 92. d^ No. 91 was placed with her for three hours on 



