of Arachnida from Rodriguez. 443 



Nephila ardentqjes^ n. sp. 



? . Ceplialotliorax black, liaiiy, oblong, with convex margins, 

 contracted behind the caput; two central shining black tubercles; 

 a deep excavation at the back of the thoracic region ; caput 

 ascending, laterally excavated ; oculiferous tubercles shining ; 

 palpi cylindrical, mahogany-red, hairy at the base, the last 

 three joints black and hairy : abdomen greyish testaceous, 

 silvery pubescent ; the dorsal region subochraceous, enclosing 

 a quadrangle of four black spots in front and two parallel rows 

 of black spots behind, where it is also bounded by six black 

 spots, three on each side ; sides covered with parallel, irregular, 

 interrupted black lines ; underside brownish, dark towards the 

 base and crossed by a yellow band, beyond which is an area 

 enclosed by black dots and shaped like a heraldic shield : legs 

 robust, hairy, mahogany-red ; the apices of the femora, knees, 

 apices of tibiae, the tarsi, and metatarsi black, the black parts 

 densely hairy ; maxillaj black, with reddish margins ; pectoral 

 plate heptagonal, with eight tubercles, three of which are 

 prominent and form a triangle ; falces black, with three mar- 

 ginal teeth. Length 36 millims. ,• relative length of legs 

 1,2,4,3. 



(Coll. by Gulliver.) 



Most nearly allied to N. nigra of Vinson ; but with the 

 abdomen smaller and not clouded with black, and the legs 

 altogether redder. I have examined thirty-seven examples, 

 but have seen no variation. 



Genus MlAGRAMMOPES. 

 Miagrammopes Oulliveri^ n. sp. 



Allied to M. Thwaitesii of Cambridge, but differing as 

 follows : — cephalothorax longer and broader, more angular 

 when seen laterally, and with convex rather than concave 

 margins ; caput longer, rather higher than the thoracic region, 

 more convex in front, testaceous, with silvery reflections and 

 a whitish hind border ; eyes black, forming a convex series 

 across the back of the caput ; lateral eyes twice as large as 

 the central pair, the latter far apart ; legs amber-yellow, the 

 femora notched at the distal extremity, the intermediate joints 

 shorter than in M. Thivaitesii^ the tarsi of the hind legs 

 broader, claws black ; palpi short, slender, hairy, testaceous ; 

 falces small, movable fang piceous ; sternum somewhat dif- 

 ferent in form ; abdomen nearly twice as long as the cephalo- 

 thorax, testaceous, with a central blackish line wider than in 

 M. Thwaifcsiij and not throwing off downward branches: basal 



