life-history of Atypus piceus. 413 



On the sand in the bell-glasses containing a tube of a 

 female I liad put several pupa of Ceruravinula, and in the 

 other a number of Pycjoira bmcphala. On June 21st, 1884, 

 several hucephala emerged, one of which must have 

 crawled over the spider's tube, for I found it newly 

 mended, with a large number of scales attached, and 

 one of tile hucepliala missing. I dug the tube up, April 

 20th, 1885, to look for tlie young, which I expected out 

 when the small hole was made for them, and there at the 

 bottom of the tube I found the rudimentary wings and 

 the cornea of the eye of the missing hucephala! On 

 June 26th, in the other glass, the spider had seized and 

 killed a freshly-emerged female vinula, but it was too 

 large to pull down. 



I think I have now said sufficient concerning the food 

 of Atypus, what it is, and how obtained. My garden 

 colony has been an endless source of pleasure to my 

 friends, who have been highly delighted at seeing these 

 spiders feed. 



When I commenced writing these notes, I thought I 

 should finish the account of the habits of the female in 

 a more pleasant manner, but my last observations 

 prevent me doing so. The truth must be told, which is, 

 that under certain circumstances she is a cannibal, 

 eating her own offspring. When the female, by making 

 an outlet in her tube, plainly intimates to her brood that 

 it is time and her desire for them to go out into the 

 world on their own account, and, if the weather should not 

 be warm or fine enough, she closes the entrance again 

 and massacres the lot or any remaining. As previously 

 stated, the tubes of the five impregnated females had, on 

 March 28th, 1885, a small round hole at the apex, and a 

 few young emerged on March 30th ; and during the 

 following night a sharp frost occurred, causing the 

 females to fasten up the holes, and though we had very 

 warm weather on April 17th and after that date, the 

 holes were not reopened in any of the five tubes. 



On April 20th I dug up three tubes, and found the 

 female the sole occupant ; not a young one to be seen, 

 but a number of empty skins, which, from their colour, 

 could not, I think, have belonged to the young v^lienfirst 

 they moulted. Two other impregnated females made 

 holes in their tubes, but no young escaped from these ; 

 I dug them up and found nothing but the female ; these 

 had been set in bell-glasses placed in the shade. 



