SPIDERS. 



81 



they spin. Some of them show much solicitude for their eggs 

 and young ; some of them brush their faces with their hairy 

 palps, thus reminding one of the similar action of a cat. 

 Gloves and stockings as curiosities have been woven out of the 



(From "Guide to Nature Study.") 



silk of their webs. In observing the adaptation to circum- 

 stances of their snaring operations one will hardly dispute 

 them the credit of being the most cunning of all the articulates. 

 After snaring their prey they pierce it with a pair of pincers 

 (mandibles or jaws) each of which terminates in a minute 

 hollow tube that conveys an atom of poison into the wound to 

 paralyze the victim. A large spider might be able to puncture 

 the skin of a soft finger and inject enough poison to cause some 

 inflammation, hence children should be cautioned against 

 handling large spiders carelessly. Any one may lift them and 

 hold them in a fold of cloth or they may be dropped into a 

 glass bottle for examination. 



Why do they spin webs? What different kinds of webs 

 have you observed and in what situations? How do they 

 spin webs 1 



