184 NATURE SKETCHES IN TEMPERATE AMERICA 



up the stem to the summit, where the new yellow petals were 

 just peeping out at the top. She stopped there, placing her 

 yellowish abdomen as near as possible to the slightly exposed 

 portions of the flower bud which bore the same color. At the 

 top of the plant there were six buds in various processes of 

 development, but the spider directly selected the very one 

 which showed promise of opening when evening dawned. All 

 day she sat patiently waiting, as if conscious that the new 

 flower would, when spreading its petals, attract food within 

 reach. When the petals finally unfolded she walked from the 

 underneath surface to the upper part of the flower near the 

 stamens, at the centre, and stealthily arranged her l)ody into 

 a living trap. She is shown in our second drawing crouched 

 in the flower at the right-hand side. 



After this period of long waiting the reward finally came. 

 First, a light spotted flower beetle flew near and made an 

 aerial descent on the flower. But evidently it was not fitting 

 food, for I was surprised to see it ignored. A moment later, 

 however, she fully awakened when a fly came to the flower and 

 she immediately seized it, using her long legs in the operation 

 of clasping it. After bringing the fly to her mandibles she let 

 go and continued her meal by holding it with her mouth parts, 

 at the same time again .spreading her legs wide apart. 



Another observation, which directs our attention to the 

 instincts of this spider, wjus made one late afternoon. I saw 

 another spider of this species on the blo.sssoms of one of the 

 primrose plants. The following early morning she had changed 

 over to another flower on the .same i)lant, having been driven 

 out by the collapsing petals, as previously described. The 

 following evening the spider was in the newly opened flower, 

 but on the third morning .she had left, leaving a dead bee as 

 the remnant of her repast. 



But why did she leave ? Wliat unerring instinct was 

 exerci.sed in telling her that the succession of flowers was at 

 an end ? For it afterwards developed that the flowers had 

 ceased blossoming. In a certain light, I caught sight of a 

 number of her spun threads connecting the tops of the different 

 flowers. Here lay tell-tale evidence, for the spider had the 

 habit of spinning out and leaving a web behind her. These 



