ARGIOPE AND HER RIBBONED ORB. 



101 



preceding attachment. The figure represents the species in the act of ascend- 

 ing the line and swinging her abdomen from the point 3. The natural 

 uplift of her body, combined with the crosswise motion of the abdomen, will 

 cause the direction to be along the dotted line towards the point 4, where the 

 next attachment will be made. After that attachment the abdomen, still 

 manipulated in the same way, will be carried across and upward to the 

 point, 5, and so on until the band is completed. As the spinning is thus 

 repeated alternately from side to side, and the ribband first fastened to one 



radius and then to its opposite, there nat- 

 urally results the peculiar zigzag formation 

 known to all observers of this web. 1 



The habit of spinning the white shield 

 and zigzag ribbons is deeply imbedded in 

 the species. One sees it continually in very 

 young spiders, and at all the ages of the ara- 

 nead until its death. It is extremely persist- 

 ent, and it is rare to find any individual 

 under normal conditions that does not make 

 the whole or a considerable part of this char- 

 acteristic spinningwork. 



I venture to give some extracts from 

 notes of observations upon the daily move- 

 ments of Cophinaria. They were made at 

 my request, by a gentleman, Mr. 



B * n J' H ' Hunt "' resident in F nk - 



FIG. 95. Manner of spinning the zigzag ribbon. ford, 0116 of the Olltei 1 Wards of 



The spider is represented as having spun the Philadelphia. 2 SillCe this journal Was made 



bands 1-2 and 2-3, and has just started to J 



make 3 4, swinging the abdomen across from I have beeil able to follow the life of this 



species through long periods, even up to 



her death, by means of colonized individuals. But at that time I was not 

 so situated as to make such consecutive observations, and I insert these notes 

 of a " lay observer " because they are not only accurate and piquant, but vary 

 the point of view and thus add value to the study. 



The spider was reported as first observed on August 30th. I will take 

 up the journal at a little later date. The spider was at the time fully mature 



1 This description is the result of a number of observations. It was several yean- after 

 I had described before the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences the manner in which 

 this spinning was done ere I was able to see the actual operation. It was pleasant to find 

 that I had anticipated the mode with absolute accuracy, and thus again shown that the 

 naturalist can at times truly " predict." 



2 Mr. Hunt became interested in one of these spiders observed on his premises, reported 

 the fact to me, and following my instructions was able to place in my hands several new facts. 

 Many persons living in rural parts and suburbs could render valuable service to natural history 

 by thus taking up one creature and following its behavior closely and continually, taking care 

 to record everything seen, with such rough drawings as might be possible. 



