1872.] SPIDERS OF PALESTINE AND SYRIA. 303 



be, on careful comparison, undoubtedly identical with Veleda lineata, 

 Blackw. 



Uloborus plumipes, Luc. Explor. de 1' Alger. Arachn. p. 252, 

 pi. 15. fig. 8. 



Adult females, easily distinguishable from the foregoing species by 

 the tufts on the legs and other marked specific characters, were found 

 in geometric snares at Hebron and Beirut. 



Fam. Thomisides. 

 Genus Thomisus (Walck.). 

 Thomisus edax, sp. nov. 



This species is of the same size, and so nearly allied to T. cristatus, 

 Bl., that no description of general structure, or of colour and mark- 

 ings, would suffice to make it readily recognizable from that species, 

 although there are slight differences in these respects ; and there 

 also appears to be one good differential character in regard to the 

 colour in the male adult — which is, that in the legs of the present 

 species the femora, genua, and a portion of the tibiae are of a uni- 

 form deep red-brown colour, and entirely without the longitudinal 

 yellowish stripe on the upperside, which, as far as my experience 

 goes, is always visible on those joints of the legs of T. cristatus. 



The structure, however, of the palpal organs is very different from 

 that species, and serves to distinguish it at once from both T. cris- 

 tatus and several others almost equally closely allied, viz. T. audax 

 (Koch), T. viaticus (Koch), and T. grcccus (Koch, c? ) ; these organs 

 consist of a large, somewhat whorled or twisted circular lobe, sur- 

 rounded by a long, strongish, filiform black spine, which adheres 

 closely to the margin of the digital joint ; from the hinder part of 

 the circular lobe spring two strong, vertical and nearly contiguous 

 corneous processes ; one of these is of a somewhat T-shape, or ham- 

 mer-headed, as in T. cristatus, but the cross part of it is much more 

 nearly at right angles to the stem, or handle part ; and one portion 

 of the cross is much longer and straighter-pointed ; the other pro- 

 cess is stronger, curved, sharp-pointed, and its sharp point nearly in 

 contact with that of the longest limb of the T-shaped process. The 

 female resembles exceedingly closely that of T. cristatus and T. 

 audax ; but it is perhaps rather more like the latter. 



Two adult males, and several females adult and immature, were 

 found on the plains of the Jordan, and another (female adult) at 

 Jerusalem. 



Thomisus cristatus, Bl. Brit. & Ir. Spid. p. 68, pi. iv. fig. 38. 



Adult females, which 1 have little doubt are those of this species, 

 were found at Nazareth. 



Thomisus varius, sp. nov. 

 Female adult, length 2| lines. 



