ELISHA MITCHELL SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY 23 



the nest is constructed that came from Pittsboro. Upon this 

 I put a fine mat of fresh moss, coverin^^ the earth except a 

 spot at one side 2}4''^*' in diameter. In this I placed the spi- 

 der at noon. I then covered it from the h"^ht. As I returned 

 to m}' room after dinner she was restini^ in a hole 3 '"' deep 

 which she had excavated, and small pellets of earth were 

 placed against the moss at the mouth of the hole. She 

 would not work durini^ the day unless I covered the jar 

 from the light. During the evening, by lamp light, I had 

 the pleasure of seeing her make another door. It required 

 about I j/ hours. Only one piece of moss was used and 

 that I let drop into the hole while she was at work. This 

 seemed very strange for the tube was the onl)' i)lace not 

 covered with moss, and to save her the trouble of cutting 

 the moss I had strewn loosened particles about the hole. In 

 this case all of the earth used in the con.struction of the door 

 was taken from the bottom of the hole. The door being 

 made almost entirely with the clay was v^ery conspicuous in 

 comparison with the surrounding moss ; though the door 

 fitted ver}' neatly, the tube being built up to a level with the 

 top of the moss. This time instead of making the hinge 

 against the side of the jar, it was made on the opposite side 

 of the tube. 



I was unable to understand how the resistance to opening 

 the door was offered, if the spider fastened its fangs and (ill 

 of its claws into the under surf ice of the door, as Mr. Mog- 

 gridge states.' A reference to Plate XX I \'. J'^gs. 3 and 4, 

 will show the results I reached in the experiment when the 

 spider was induced to make a trap-door to the mouth of a 

 glass test tube. The portion of the tube from h to r was not 

 lined with silk. The spider, evidentl)' not admiring the cork 

 at (/ for a bottom to her nest, carried in pellets of earth and 

 bits of moss as shown at </. .She then spun a short bag of 

 silk, /', which was attachnd b)- the mouth to the walls of the 

 tube at (\ and resterl on the piece of cork. The mouth of 

 the test tube was lined with silk froui the edge for about 

 -„,.,... to 7 '■'■•"•. The ends of the silk lining at />] and the silk 

 bag at r, were for some flistance transparent so that J w as 

 enabled to see the spider fairl)' well. As can be seen in fig. 

 14, the si)ider clings to the bag of silk at the bottom (or 

 walls of the tube) with the claws of her two posterior pair of 

 legs, and to the under surf ice of th(' door with her fin<'"sand 



'Harvesting Ant.s and Trap Door Spiders, pp. *J5 and 00. 



