SPIDERS. 363 



aid of spring hinges. When the spider is at home, 

 and her door forcibly opened by an intruder, she 

 pulls it strongly inwards, and even when half-opened 

 often snatches it out of the hand; but when she is 

 foiled in this, she retreats to the bottom of her den, 

 as her last resource.* 



Rossi ascertained that the female of an allied species 

 {Mijgale sauvagesii, Latr.), found in Corsica, lived 

 in one of these nests with a numerous posterity. He 

 destroyed one of these doors to observe whether a 

 new one would be made, which it was: but it was 

 fixed immoveably, without a hinge; the spider, no 

 doubt, fortifying herself in this manner till she 

 thought she might re-open it without danger."]" 



'^ The Rev Revett Shepherd has often noticed 

 in the fen ditches of Norfolk, a very large spider 

 (the species not yet determined) which actually 

 forms a raft for the purpose of obtaining its prey 

 with more facility. Keeping its station upon a ball 

 of weeds about three inches in diameter, probably 

 held together by slight silken cords, it is wafted 

 along the surface of the water upon this floating 

 island, which it quits the moment it sees a drowning 

 insect. The booty thus seized it devours at leisure 

 upon its raft, under which it retires when alarmed by 

 any danger. "J 



Among our native spiders there are several be- 

 side this one, which, not contented with a web like 

 the rest of their congeners, take advantage of other 

 materials to construct cells where, '' hush'd in grim 

 repose," they " expect their insect prey." The 

 most simple of those spider-cells is constructed 



* Mem. Soc. d'Hist. Nat. de Paris, An. vii. 



+ Ibid. p. 125, and Latreille, Hist. Nat. G ner. viii. p. 163. 



t Kirby and Spence, Intr. i. 425. 



