The Labyrinth Spider 331 



and of crumbly wreckage from the mortar of 

 the walls. Other species, living in the open 

 under stones, work in the same way. They 

 wrap their eggs in a mineral shell held together 

 with silk. The same fears have inspired the 

 same protective methods. 



Then how comes it that, of the five mothers 

 reared in my cages, not one has had recourse 

 to the clay rampart ? After all, sand abounded : 

 the pans in which the wire-gauze covers stood 

 were full of it. On the other hand, under 

 normal conditions, I have often come across 

 nests without any mineral casing. These in- 

 complete nests were placed at some height from 

 the ground, in the thick of the brushwood ; the 

 others, on the contrary, those supplied with a 

 coating of sand, lay on the ground. 



The method of the work explains these 

 differences. The concrete of our buildings is 

 obtained by the simultaneous manipulation of 

 gravel and mortar. In the same way, the Spider 

 mixes the cement of the silk with the grains of 

 sand ; the spinnerets never cease working, 

 while the legs fling under the adhesive spray 

 the sohd materials collected in the immediate 



