THE SPIDER BA VISHERS. 149 



then, climbing a bean plant, deposited it upon a leaf whicli was 

 closely covered by another. Then she ran off again and was 

 gone thirty-five minutes. "We remained with the spider, since 

 the plants were so close together that it was impossible to fol- 

 low her. When she returned she seized her treasure and started 

 off among the plants where, in spite of our efforts to the con- 

 trary, we soon lost her. A sixth example added little to our 

 knowledge. She carried a small tripiinctatus in her mandibles 

 as she ran backward. She was as frantically anxious to ac- 

 complish something, and as helplessly incompetent to accom- 

 plish anything as the others. Once her victim was hung up on 

 a sorrel plant, and once it was hidden within a hole, where she 

 remained "s\dth it for some minutes. When she came out and 

 flew away we dug it out, but there was no egg upon it, so we had 

 taken it too soon. It was severely paralyzed so that for three 

 days there was scarcely any quivering in response to stimula- 

 tion. On the fourth day it was a little better, but on the sev- 

 enth, it died. 



On September first, while out in the bean patch, we saw a 

 large Lycosid running madly, first in one direction and then in 

 another. Hovering eagerly and excitedly just above, was our 

 marginatifs, dashing down at the spider again and again as it 

 came into view for an instant, and then circling wildly around 

 until it appeared once more. ]^ow she pounced upon the fright- 

 ened spider but missed her aim, now she really grasped it but 

 was shaken off. At last the end came. The wasp descended 

 upon the doomed spider and there was a violent struggle, both 

 the combatants rolling over and over upon the ground, while all 

 that we could distinguish was the flashing of the red upon the 

 body of the wasp. In an instant it was over, and the wasp 

 rose, leaving the spider limp and motionless, upon its back. 

 In our other examples of marginatus the spider taken had been 

 so small that the wasp might easily have held it and thrust her 

 sting into any spot that she pleased, but this Lycosid was a dif- 

 ferent antagonist. In the fierce battle where the two were so 

 neai'ly matched, there could have been but slight opportunity 



