on the Species of Trap-door Spiders. 1 73 



to Brown's plate 44, fig. 3. In liis subsequent work, however, the 

 " Entomologia Systematica," vol. ii. p. 409, he incorrectly gives 

 his ^. nidulatis as synonymous with the A. venntoria, Linnaeus, 

 retaining his reference to Brown's plate 41, figure S, although 

 Linneeus had referred to fig. 2 only. It fortunately happens 

 that the identical copy of Gronovius which belonged to Linnaeus 

 is now preserved in the Linntean Society's Library, and as Lin- 

 nseus had written the name vcnaloria opposite to the description 

 of the spider given by Gronovius under No. 938, it is clear that 

 this Linna^an description is intended for the species described by 

 Gronovius, which belongs to a totally different family, which does 

 not make tubular cells, but carries its egg- case beneath its body, 

 as correctly described by Gronovius, Merian, and Sloan, the first 

 three Linnsean authorities for the species ; of which also the spe- 

 cific name implies a different economy. The spider, however, 

 figured by Brown in his 2nd figure of plate 42 is a true Mrjgale, 

 and Linnaeus had written, opposite to its description, in his copy 

 of Brown's work, *' araneus uvicularius ," but he does not cite it in 

 his account of that species, but incorrectly refers it to the Grono- 

 vian spider. The Baron Walckenaer is, therefore, correct, when 

 he says that Linnaeus incorrectly cited Brown's figure 2 as a 

 synonym of the Gronovian species ; but he is in error in stating 

 that Linnaeus referred to Brown's figure of the M. nididans, Lin- 

 naeus having no where noticed the figures given by Brown of the 

 trap-door species. 



Kirbyand Spence, Koch and others, following the later nomen- 

 clature of Fabricius, have described the trap-door Jamaica species 

 under the name of Mygale or Aranca venatoria. That specific 

 name, however, has been shown to belong to Gronovius's species, 

 which Latrielle gives as a Tliomisus, and Walckenaer as an Olios. 

 The latter author, however, although citing Linneeus correctly, 

 prefers adopting a specific name of his own, 0. Leucosius, which 

 must be rejected in favour of the Linnaean name. 



We know not what authority Fabricius had for giving Sir Joseph 

 Banks's insect as the architect of the nest figured by Brown in his 

 third figure, but we know that Latreille's description of his M. 

 nididans is derived from the very same specimen described by 

 Fabricius, Sir Joseph Banks's collection being now in th» possession 

 of the Linnaean Society. 



Supposing the existence of two species differing in their modes 

 of forming the valves of their nests, it is evident that if Fabricius 

 be correct in giving the reference to Brown's figure 3, under his 

 A. nidulans, Latreille must clearly have erred in considering the 



VOL. III. o 



