1558 THE PIRATE-SPIDEK. 



nimble creature, running quickly along, as, indeed, is needful for a being that depends on 

 its agility for its living. 



About June, the female has made up her little packet of eggs, inclosed in a snowy- 

 white silken envelope, and carries this burden about wherever she goes. Nothing will 

 separate her from her eggs. If the packet is forcibly removed, she remains on the spot, 

 hunting in every direction, and evidently suffering great distress ; and if the white ball be 

 laid near her, she soon spies it, darts at it almost fiercely, and carries it off. Her affection 

 for her egg-ball is, however, quite instinctive ; like the feeling which induces a hen to sit 

 upon a piece of white chalk, which she takes for an egg. If a little bit of white cotton- 

 wool be rolled up so as to resemble the lost egg-packet, the spider will seize it and make 

 off with it, not at all suspecting the imposition. 



There are, on an average, about one hundred eggs in each packet. They are quite 

 round, and very tiny, like the palest yellow translucent dust shot ; and their silken covering 

 is drawn so tight, that their globular forms give it an appearance of being embossed. The 

 colour of this species is greenish brown, with a few little dark spots, and the body is also 

 banded and spotted with yellowish brown of various shades. 



THE species on the right hand of the illustration is also common in England. It is 

 rather a prettier species than that which has just been mentioned, being of a rich chestnut- 

 brown, with a longitudinal bar of yellow along the body, and a number of yellow spots on 

 each side of the bar, where it runs over the abdomen. The colours of the male are rather 

 duller than in the female. The cocoon of this species is yellowish brown in colour, and 

 contains about fifty eggs. A band of slighter texture and lighter hue surrounds the 

 cocoon. 



One species of this genus, the PIKATE-SPIDEE (Lyc6sa pirdticd), deserves a brief notice. 

 This creature is mostly found near water, or on marshy land. It is very quick and active, 

 and can run on the surface of the water without sinking. If alarmed, it immediately takes 

 refuge below the surface, crawling down the stems of aquatic plants, and can remain in 

 that position for a long time. The egg-packet contains about one hundred eggs, generally 

 rather less, and seems to be no impediment to the activity of the mother, who can run 

 over the water even when thus incumbered. 



The colour of the Pirate-spider is rather complicated. The cephalothorax is brownish 

 black, edged on either side by a white band, and having a dull yellow streak along its 

 centre. Along the upper part of the abdomen runs a chestnut patch, edged with white 

 spots, and having an arch-like mark of pure white, the point of the arch being directed 

 towards the tail of the spider. The rest of the abdomen is simple grey-brown. The male 

 is smaller and duller coloured than his mate. 



I may here remark, that a full account of these, and many other British Arachnida, 



may be found in Mr. Blackwall's splendid work on this subject. 



i 



THE two handsome spiders in the next illustration are inhabitants of Britain. 



The pretty Dolomedes mirdbilis is found in well-wooded districts. We learn from 

 Mr. Blackwall's researches, that the cocoon of this species is of a dull yellow colour, 

 smooth within and rough without, and containing more than two hundred yellow eggs, 

 loosely tied up in the cocoon. She carries her yellow burden under the thorax, and 

 supports it, not only by her limbs, but by some silken threads which serve to bind it to 

 the body. When the young are about to leave the cocoon, the mother spins a rather 

 large silken nest among grass or low bushes, This nest is of a dome-like shape, and under 

 its shelter the young spiders are first set free. They immediately cluster upon the silken 

 lines spun by themselves, and remain under the dome until they are strong enough to go 

 out into the world on their own account. 



The colour of this fine spider is yellowish brown, and at each side of the body runs a 

 deep black band, having a narrow white line along its centre. When the female has laid 

 her eggs, she loses these fine tints, and resumes a sober grey colour. 



ON the left hand of the illustration may be seen another species belonging to the same 

 genus, which is not only one of the handsomest, but one of the largest British Spiders, its 



