100 MR. R. I. POCOCK ON THE [June 3y 



against the entrance of the water with a thick web When 



once both sexes had been transferred to the coral-reefs, the species. 

 Avould increase and foi'm a colony there." 



Dr. Koch subsequently received the following further informa- 

 tion from Di'. von Martens : — " During my residence at Singapore 

 in October 1861 , 1 repeatedly visited a coral-bank in the neighbour- 

 hood of New Harbour, of which large tracts were exposed above 

 water during the ebb, at the time of new and full moon. My 

 attention was chiefly directed to Crustacea and MoUusca ; I tore 

 off pieces of coral and broke them up to get at the creatures 

 hidden within. To my astonishment, I several times observed 

 spiders hurriedly escaping. The idea occui'red to me at first that 

 we ourselves had brought them fi-om the shore in our clothing. 

 .... This suspicion was rendered unlikely by the frequent repe- 

 tition of the event, and was conclusively disproved, as Dr. Johswick 

 found a web of undoubtedly one of these spiders in an old dead 

 mussel-shell between the coral, stretched sheet-like in the cavity 

 of the shell " (C. L. Koch, Die Arach. Austral, pp. 349-350). 

 Dr. Koch had previously discussed the discovery of the marine 

 habits of this Spider, 



Mr. T. G. Workman (Malaysian Spiders, pt. 10, p. 74, 1896) 

 writes of this species : — "This spider was discovered by me on the 

 Blacku Mati coral-reef off the Kew Harboui-, Singapore, the 

 place where it was first discovered by Dr. Martens in 1861. I 

 found it was perfectly helpless when placed in a bottle of water, 

 showing in every way that it was not in its natuiul element. It 

 lives in holes made by a species of LitJwclomus, and spins a 

 matted web across the hole and so keeping an aii-- chamber for 

 itself during flood-tide. It is found in considerable numbers, but 

 as it runs with great rapidity, is ver}- hard to catch." 



2. Desis maxillosa (Fabr.). 



Aranea maxillosa Fabricius, Ent. Syst. ii. p. 411 (1793), teste 

 Schiodte. 



Desis dysderoides Walckenaer, Ins. Apt. i. pp. 610 & 682, pi. iv. 

 fig. 151 (1837), also ii. p. 483 (1837) ; L. Koch, Die Arachn.. 

 Austral, p. 347 (1872). 



Desis maxillosa Simon, Hist. Nat. Araign. ii. p. 225, figs. 215- 

 217 (1898). 



Loc. New Guinea {Qiwy c(' Gahnard) ; Yanikoro (sec. Simon) ;. 

 Santa Cruz ^ Island in the Melanesian Archipelago to the north 

 of the New Hebrides {Fabricms). 



Habits unrecorded. No specimen in British Museum. The 

 characters of this species given below are taken from Sim.on's 

 figures. 



1 Fabricius gives St. Crux Island (Dr. Pflug) as the localitj' of this species. This 

 is presumablj- the Santa Cruz Island in the Melanesian Archipelago. It must be 

 borne in mind, however, that there is an island of St. Croix close to Port Elizabeth 

 iu South Africa, which is also the home of Desis. Is it not possible therefore that 

 maxillosa Fabr. was based upon a South African species ? 



