Oct., '04] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 259 



The cephalothorax is black beneath, on the sides, and on that portion 

 of the dorsal aspect that slopes toward the abdomen. The higher portion 

 is reddish brown above, like the abdomen. The chelicerae are iridescent 

 green and purplish. The pedipalps and the first two pairs of legs have 

 yellowish scales scattered here and there, and rings of like color near 

 some of the joints. The presence of some long whitish hairs on these 

 appendages is also common. The second and third pairs of legs are 

 almost always uniformly black, though some specimens have the proxi- 

 mal half of the tarsus lighter. 



This spider spends the winter under loose stones in large 

 oval dwelling-sacks of closely woven silk, protected in some 

 cases by the addition of leaves or trash. I have found the 

 species only in the vicinity of Manhattan, on the summits or 

 higher slopes of hills capped with the Permian limestone. I 

 have not been able to identify the male. 



Family ARGIOPID^. 

 Araneas singaeformis sp. nov. (Figs. 4, 5, 6.) 



This small orbweaver is of the type usually referred to the 

 genus Shiga, a group whose species Simon includes in the 

 genus Araneus. 



Female. — Length 4-5 mm. The abdomen is oval, moderately high, 

 and symmetrical in outline. It projects some distance over the cephalo- 

 thorax. The latter is broad back of the head region, which is much 

 narrower and distinctly set off by lateral grooves. The head itself is 

 considerably elevated. The median ocular area is nearly or quite square. 

 The lateral eyes are contiguous. The legs are short and show very few 

 spines. 



Coloration. — The cephalothorax, legs and chelicerae are various shades 

 of dull yellow. The head is usually brightest and the thoracic region 

 darkest, in some cases tinged with brown. The legs are unmarked, 

 except in an occasional specimen which shows traces of longitudinal 

 stripes, particularly on the femora. The ocular quadrangle, as well as 

 a small area about the lateral eyes, is black. The abdomen above and 

 on the sides is whitish, tinged with a fine network of brown. The muscle 

 depressions are marked by brownish spots, and down the center of the 

 abdomen in most specimens is a more or less branched scar-like stripe. 

 A broad border of black nearly or quite encircles the dorsum near the 

 margin. Sometimes it is interrupted at the anterior end and occasionally 

 also at the posterior end. The central portion of the abdomen beneath 

 is occupied by a broad black band running back from the epigynum and 

 enclosing the spinnerets. On either side of this is a narrow stripe of 



