88 'T. THORELL, 
many arachnologists, SIMON and OHLERT among the rest.— Of the value of 
the distinctions that separate JVeriene from Walckenaera and Linyphia we 
have already delivered an opinion (p. 82—83). 
While WESTRING unites into one genus, Ærigone, the species that 
compose Kocn's Erigone and Micryphantes, the large number of species, of 
which the latter genus consists, and which makes a division of it desirable, 
has given occasion to two attempts of the kind, which however do not seem 
to us to have been attended by fully satisfactory results. SIMON divides 
Micryphantes (loc. cit.) into the sub-genera Micryphantes, Melicertus, Pele- 
copsis, Nerieneus, Widerius and Arrecerus, in consequence of more or less 
accurately observed differences in the form of the head and the position of 
the eyes in the males. He however already at the end of the same work 
discards (Walckenaera and) Nerieneus. MENGE, in his ” Preussische Spinnen”, 
resolves the genus Micryphantes or Walckenaera into a very large number 
of new genera, but does not adopt any of Sımon’s or BLACKWALL’S here ci- 
ted names. Several of these genera are founded on characteristics belong- 
ing only to the males, others on modifications, which appear to me of too 
subordinate importance to be used as the characteristics of genera. Some 
of them, however, may perhaps deserve to be acknowledged. But as the 
3" Part of MENGES work, in which many of his new genera are proposed, 
did not come out till shortly before the present sheet was sent to the 
press, I cannot now enter into any detailed examination of his classification 
of the spiders in question, but preserve for the present the genus Walcke- 
naera undivided, and of the extent above named. 
The weak and slender superior tarsal claws of the species compos- 
ing the genus Walckenaera have usually 6—8 teeth, greatly varying in 
length; the inferior claw has one, rarely two pointed teeth. The palpal 
claw is absent, except in the case of a few species (belonging to the genus 
Ceratina MENGE), in which it has 1—3 teeth. Conf. MENGE, Preuss. Spin- 
nen, II, p. 171 et seq. 
Gen. 9. NESTICUS wn. 
Deriv.: vnozıx0s, skilful in spinning (vw, v79w, spin). 
b 5 
Syn.: 1805. Theridium Warck., Tabl. d. Aran., p. 72 (ad part.: ”4° Fam. Les Cryptico- 
les, Orypticole”). 
1841. Linyphia ID., H. N. d. Ins. Apt., II, p. 233 (ad partem). 
1841. Meta ©. Koch, Die Arachn., VIII, (ad part.:) p. 123. 
1859. Theridium THor., Om Clercks Origin.-spindelsaml., (ad part.:) p. 150. 
