The Black- Bellied Tarantula 5 



to the sun. She lives generally — at least when 

 full-grown — in underground passages, regular 

 burrows, which she digs for herself. These 

 burrows are cylindrical ; they are often an inch 

 in diameter and run into the ground to a depth 

 of more than a foot ; but they are not per- 

 pendicular. The inhabitant of this gut proves 

 that she is at the same time a skilful hunter 

 and an able engineer. It was a question for 

 her not only of constructing a deep retreat that 

 could hide her from the pursuit of her foes : she 

 also had to set up her observatory whence to 

 watch for her prey and dart out upon it. The 

 Tarantula provides for every contingency : the 

 underground passage, in fact, begins by being 

 vertical, but, at four or five inches from the 

 surface, it bends at an obtuse angle, forms a 

 horizontal turning and then becomes per- 

 pendicular once more. It is at the elbow of this 

 tunnel that the Tarantula posts herself as a 

 vigilant sentry and does not for a moment 

 lose sight of the door of her dwelling ; it was 

 there that, at the period when I was hunting 

 her, I used to see those eyes gleaming like 

 diamonds, bright as a cat's eyes in the dark. 



