NOTES ON THE ARCHITECTURE, NESTING HABITS, and 



LIFE HISTORIES op AUSTRALIAN ARANEID^, based 



ON SPECIMENS IN THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM. 



By W. J. Rainbow, F.L.S., F.E.S., Entomologist. 



(Figs. 53-54). 



PART VI.— ENTELEGYNiE (Continued). 



Family ARGIOPIDvE (=EPEIRID^, Auct.). 



Formerly this family was considered as including all and only 

 those species whose snares are geometrical or orbicular. Dr. 

 McCook in his great work^ adopted this method. Since, however, 

 some species, which cannot under any consideration be regarded 

 as Argiopida^, fabricate orbicular webs-, and some true Argiopids 

 do not, any classification which has for its basic principal the 

 method or style of architecture, must of necessity be artificial 

 and unscientific. This doubtful system of classification, of course, 

 is not by any means new ; it was used by the old school of natui'a- 

 lists, and so far as McCook is concerned, is interesting only from 

 the fact that so modern and capable a student still apparently 

 adheres to and even justifies it. 



The family is extensive and widely spread, and the species 

 comprising it sedentary. Simon has divided it into four sub- 

 families, viz., Linyphiinje, Tetragnathina^, Nephilinpe, and Argio- 

 pin?e, and these latter again into numei'ous groups or sections. 



Sxih-family, LINYPHIINyE. 



The Linyphiina? are regarded by some authors as entitled to 

 absolute family rank — Linyphiida?, but Simon has included them in 

 the Argiopida" as a sub-family. In doing so, the author quoted, 

 points out that though it is possible to trace a number of constant 



1 McCook — American Spiders and their Spinning "Work, i., 1889, \>. 17. 



2 Kainbow— Bee. Aiist. Mus., iv., 3, 1901, p. 138. 



