38 REV. 0. P. CAMBRIDGE ON NEW ARANEIDEA. __[Feb. 5, 
Collett from near Meiktela, Upper Burmah, through the kindness 
of Mr. George King (of the Botanic Gardens at Calcutta). They 
are closely allied to Idiops crassus, Sim. (also a Burmese spider) ; 
but differ in being of a much paler hue, as well as (apparently) in 
the relative disposition of the eyes and armature of the legs ; these 
in Idiops crassus ave said to be armed with spines as in Idiops 
syriacus, Cambr., in which the smaller denticulate spines are almost 
wholly absent. From Idiops syriacus the present species also 
differs in being larger and of a duller hue ; also the denticule on the 
maxillee are confined to their inner side, and there are only two in 
a transverse line at the apex of the labium. The eyes also of the 
hind central pair in J. syriacus are separated by a comparatively 
wider interval than in J. colletti, being double as far apart as each 
is from the lateral eye on its side. 
Nests of these spiders accompanied them. They are of the cork- 
lid type, and present some interesting features. I cannot perhaps 
do better than append the very graphic account of them given by 
General Collett :— 
‘‘These spiders are apparently more or less gregarious in their 
habitations; where one is found five or six more will perhaps be 
found within the radius of a yard; but a solitary nest is not at all 
unusual. 
‘The soil they inhabit is a stiff argillaceous (?) sand, quite free of 
stones, very hard at this time of year, though probably soft and 
easy for the spiders to burrow in during the rainy season. 
“The surface of the ground in which the burrows are found is 
usually thinly covered with a scanty growth of grass, now dry and 
withered. Where the grass is thick the burrows are not so common, 
but this is possibly due to the increased difficulty of detecting them. 
« All the burrows that I have seen (a hundred or more) are 
situated in an open grassy plain, now cleared, but recently covered 
with a low scrub jungle, and having a gentle slope. None have been 
found on banks or on steeply sloping ground. 
«The upper surface of the burrow door is flush with the level of 
the ground, except occasionally where the superficial soil appears to 
have been washed away by the rain since the nest was made. It is 
of precisely the same appearance and colour as the adjacent ground, 
and the burrows are therefore extremely difficult of detection. 
“T have never observed any accumulation of earth near the mouths 
of the burrows, though a considerable quantity must have been 
excavated in the construction of a hole more than half an inch in 
diameter and seven inches deep. Nor have I succeeded in finding 
any burrows in course of construction, though empty and disused 
burrows with displaced doors are not uncommon. It is possible that 
the spiders excavate only during the rainy season, when the soil is 
soft. At the present time no rain has fallen for three months past. 
“The door, or rather lid, of the burrow is composed of grains of 
sand firmly agglutinated together, perhaps with some secretions from 
the insect ; its upper surface is exactly similar in general appearance 
to the adjacent ground, and is often covered with the dry, black 
