THE HOUSE SPIDER 



193 



the palpi, neither do they repeat many times with a single pal- 

 pus. At one mating copulation usually takes ]>lace several times 

 and rapidly. One male which was kept in captivity copulated 

 with a female four times in three minutes. The mating process 

 is very fatigiiing to the male and frequently leaves him ex- 

 hausted. It is at this time that the female assaults the male, and 

 occasionally in nature and frequently in captivity succeeds in 

 capturing and killing him. The venom of the female is fatal 

 when applied to the male, and probably would be fatal to the 

 female herself if she should by accident inflict self injury. 



Fig. i!9. — ^Method of matins in T. tepidariornin. Drawing X:j 



Polyandry. — In mating habits the house spider is more or less 

 promiscuous. One male may mate with several females, hut 

 if he does it is by wandering from one web to another. Never 

 does more than one mature female occupy a web, but upon this 

 web occasionally two or even more males may be found. The 

 writer kept two males with a female in captivity. Among them 

 there was no jealousy or enmity. Two males have been observed 

 mating with a single female at one time, each taking his turn, 

 without any commotion. 



The female is, then, irregularly polyandrous. The males are 

 promiscuous. Yet while both of these statements are true there 

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