136 JOURNAL OF THE 



lariiie are '' closed by the falling over of a portion of the tube 

 which protudes from the surface of the ground." 



My own introduction to Atypus was largely accidental. On 

 the 19th of July^ 1886, in a small body of pine wood within 

 the corporation limits of the village of Wake Forest, N. C, my 

 attention was caught by a silk tube at the foot of a small pine 

 tree. Being well covered with minute bits of bark, leaves, etc. 

 it had nearly the appearance of the bark of the tree to which its 

 upper end was attached, and, consequently, it was quite incon- 

 spicuous. Its greatest diameter — at the ground — was about 2 

 cm., and it showed above ground some 15 cm. The next day it 

 was observed that the upper extremity had become detached from 

 the tree and the whole aerial portion lay prostrate on the ground. 

 The subterranean portion was 2 or 3 cm. long. At the lower 

 end were the exuviae of the spider. The day following I pressed 

 the spider out of the tube as it lay on the table.* For some 

 time she walked about rather aimlessly, but finally coming upon 

 the tube apparently by accident, she extended and raised her 

 powerful fangs and with one stroke ripped a longitudinal slit 

 and worked herself into it. The tube with the spider inside 

 was put into a glass jar containing a little earth and dead pine 

 leaves. The surface of the latter was not high enough to sup- 

 port the tube in a vertical position throughout its entire length, 

 so that nearly half of it lay collapsed and wrinkled on the top 

 of the leaves. The next morning the spider had lengthened the 

 tube about 3 cm. upward from the point where it was bent from 

 the vertical, and the addition had been made in such a way that 

 it was smoothly continuous with the oki portion below through 

 a rent. Its upper end was attached to the glass. The old por- 

 tion that lay horizontal on the leaves no longer communicated 

 with the remodelled tube, though it remained attached to the 

 outside of it. Two days later the tube had grown 6 cm. longer, 

 tapering toward the upper end, very thin, and closed. 



*Mr. N. Banks, assistant of Prof. Comstock, has determined the species as Atypus 

 niger Hentz, but I am at present unable to feel quite satisfied that the determination is 

 cori-ect, seeing how meagre is tlie description wliieh Hentz gives. The settlement of the 



Question must be deferred until I have opportunity to compare the spider with other 

 escriptions. 



