70 Rev. F. O. Pickard-Carabridge on 



of tins difficult family is by any means quite satisfactory ; but 

 the generic characters given may be of assistance to fellow 

 students who may wish for a few good landmarks to guide 

 them in the task of threading the intricacies of a distressingly 

 involved group of spiders. 



Fam. Therididae. 

 Group Linyphini. 



This large group comprises all those numerous spiders 

 described under the generic name Liny phi a, Bl. & Cambr., as 

 well as many under the names Neriene, Bl. & Cambr., Micry- 

 phantes, Menge, and other generic titles. 



The spiders have as a rule long slender legs, clothed with 

 more or less long stout spines. They construct a horizontal 

 sheet-like web, in many cases having a maze of crossing 

 and recrossing labyrinthine threads above it, upon bushes, 

 amongst grass, in the foliage of trees, amongst rocks, in the 

 corners of outhouses, &c, while many of the smaller members 

 of the group merely weave a slight horizontal web beneath 

 stones and over hoof-marks or slight depressions in the ground. 

 One species, Drapetisca socialis [Linyphia, Bl. & Cambr.), is 

 always found witli its legs outstretched and its body lying- 

 flat on fir-tree trunks or smooth rocks. 



Below will be found the most tangible characters by which 

 the members of this group, as characterized by M. Simon in 

 ' Les Arachnides de France,' may be recognized, and added to 

 these will be found a brief summary of the characters which 

 appear to be most easily observable, and therefore, it is hoped, 

 the most practically useful, of those genera into which M. 

 Simon has divided his group Linyphini. 



Linyphini. 



Labium having a fold in the integument at the apex (having 

 the margin refexed or turned back upon itself}. Tibia*, of the 

 fourth pair of legs (usually of all the other legs as well) fur- 

 nished vith two erect spines or bristles on the upper side } one 

 near the base, the other towards the apex. 



The following genera are all represented by one or more 

 species to be found in Great Britain, and most of them seem 

 to form good distinctive groups. Taranucnus, Sim., repre- 

 sented in our fauna by Linyphia setosa, Cambr., however, 

 seems scarcely separable from Lcpiyphantcs, while Porhommaj 



