56 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH THE VICTORIAN "KATIPO." 



Whilst listening to Dr. Ralph's interesting paper on the 

 " Katipo " of New Zealand, at our last meeting, I was much 

 surprised on learning that the red-backed spider so common 

 around Melbourne is the veritable "katipo," and, as I believe, 

 (from the little I saw of the specimen exhibited by Dr. Ralph) 

 identical with the New Zealand species. 



Having frequently picked up this spider with my bare 

 fingers, quite unconscious of any danger, I became anxious — 

 after learning the nature of its bite — to know what amount of 

 risk I had run, and if it possessed to the same extent the 

 dangerous qualities attributed to the New Zealand representa- 

 tive. 



As I found no difficulty in obtaining specimens of the 

 "katipo," I determined to make some experiments, and 

 believing a mouse to be an uncertain test — it being well known 

 that a mouse, if confined in a trap, will die in from 20 to 30 

 hours without the aid of poison or any other deadly agent — I 

 decided to try the experiment on a brood of chickens, about 

 six weeks old, the whole of which I was prepared to sacrifice in 

 the event of my finding spiders poisonous enough to be the 

 executioners. Taking one of the hardiest — that it might not 

 be said " the standard of vitality had been lowered " — I placed 

 the spider on its comb, and, after a good deal of squeezing, 

 succeeded in making it bite. On removing the spider, there 

 appeared two small specks of blood, a short distance apart, at 

 the spot where the spider's head was placed. After cutting the 

 feathers of the chick's tail, to mark it from its mates, I let it go, 

 so that its condition was in no way altered, except from the 

 effects of the bite. I am glad to say the bite was not fatal, 

 although I believe the chick was affected by it. It moped 

 about for four or five hours, with its head almost buried in its 

 neck, and its eyes closed, declining all food, although I tried 

 to tempt it with a few choice morsels. On the following 

 day, however, it appeared as lively and as hearty as the rest of 

 the brood. I have since tried three others, allowing two 

 spiders to bite each, one on the comb, and another under the 

 wing ; but in neither case was the chick affected to anything 

 like the extent of the first. 



The '■ katipo" having shown itself unequal to the task in 

 regard to the chicken, I decided to try on smaller game, and a 

 few days after succeeded in capturing a large mole-cricket, 

 which, judging from the length of time it will resist the effects 

 of spirits, I counted a fair test. The difficulty now arose how 

 to make the " katipo" bite the cricket without risking my finger. 

 It takes a good squeeze at anytime to induce the " katipo" 



