774 A NEW SPIDER OP THE GENUS LinilSTIUS. 



Habits*. — This spider inhabits weib-lined burrows fitted with 

 a trap-door of the wafer type. The burrows, wliicli are about 

 28 mm. in diameter and 400 to 450 mm. long, are found, from 

 the examination of about 20 examples, to be liorizontal in general 

 direction, but usually are somewhat bent so tliat a straight stick 

 cannot be thrust in very far ; they are unbranched and the inner 

 end is somewhat enlarged. The ti-ap-door is invalriably hinged to 

 the mouth of the tube at the upper edge, and another very inter^- 

 estin" fact is that the lines of web, which in L. hatuensis Abr. 

 are employed to support the nest upon the vertical cave- walls t, 

 are by the present species used to keep the web-lining stretched 

 over the edge of the burrow so as to form a '* lip " against which 

 "the lid can close down tightly; this may be seen very clearly in 

 Plate I. fig. 2, in which the lid is shown in the opened position. 

 All the burrows found so far have had their openings on prac- 

 tically bare banks with perhaps a few small ferns, etc. growing 

 near, but, as all bare banks in this country are artificial cuttings, 

 and those in question have been made within the last 20 years or 

 so it is almost certain that the spider must live in the jungle on 

 the neighbouring hills. The trap-doors of the observed burrows 

 all have small stones and particles of earth woven into them. 



The spider appears to be entirely nocturnal, as pins placed in 

 front of the entrances of burrows were never disturbed during 

 the day, but have always been pushed out of position during the 

 night; the spider also seems quite "lost" in bright light. It 

 does not appear to be common as, in annual visits to the hill 

 upon which it was found from 1918 to 1922 inclusive, only com- 

 paratively few individuals — not more than about 20 altogether — 

 have been observed. As is generally the case with burrowing 

 spiders, Z- malayanus occupies the same nest for a long time ; in 

 fact, it probably does not change its quarters unless forced 

 to do so. 



Locality. — Gunong Angsi, Negri Sembilan, F.M.S. ; 2500 feet. 

 December 1922 {coll. Mr. F. de la Mare iVoms). 



Speciviens examined. — One adult female, which I have sent to 

 the British Museum, Natural History Department +. 



* From notes of liis field observations kindly supplied by Mr. F. de la 'Mtxio 

 Norris. 



t Al)raliam, I. c. supra, p. 19, and plate i. fig. 2. 

 j Togetlier with its trap-door. 



