THE TRIANGLE SPIDER : THE ORB SECTOR. 



183 



The mode of spinning the foundation lines or frame has never been 

 observed, as far as I know, by any naturalist. A careful study of a number 

 of webs, however, has led me to con- 

 clude that it is spun as follows : In 

 the first place, the spider stretches 



between two points a sin- J 

 Making gj e j me ^ w hi c h we may rep- 



Fram resent by the dotted line, 



PB, in Fig. 171. She then 



proceeds to attach to this line, say at 



the point A, another- thread, which 



is Carried aloilg the Original line, FIG - 171 - Making the frame of the Triangle spider's 



PB, to the place of attachment, B. 



Thence up the branch or other object to C, where the carried line is 

 drawn taut and fastened. There is thus produced the line AC, and the 



original foundation line having been drawn 

 upward by pulling upon AC, has assumed 

 the curved form of AB. The two outer 

 radii of the snare are thus in place. Now 

 the spider drops from the point CB, carry- 

 ing with her a thread, which is attached at 

 B, and becomes thus the base line of the 

 triangle CABC. Proceeding along the line 

 BA, carrying with her a thread as before, 



1st 



FIG. 172. Frame or radial lines of Hyptiotes' ghe makeg another attachment at E, 

 snare, as in nature. 



upon her course to B, and thence upward 



to E, on the base line where the carried thread is straightened, fastened, 



and the third radius, EE, completed. In a similar way the fourth radius, 



DD, is stretched. This, of course, 



does not express the exact order in 



every case, but the general method. 



It will be observed that these 



radial lines do not meet in a com- 



mon point. This is in- 



Have deed contrary to most 

 Radii a , ,. , -, , ... 



Common P ubllshed descriptions of 

 Point? * ne appearance of the 

 snare. For example, 



TllOrell Speaks Of these threads in FIG. 173. Natural arrangement of radii, to show the order 



the net of Hyptiotes paradoxus as in which they are spun - 



forming " equal angles with the original thread, and each other." l Em- 



erton speaks of the apex as " the point where the rays meet." 2 He again 



1 European Spiders, page 70. - Xew England Spiders, Family CiniflonidaB. 



