Gurt1Es.—On the Habits of the Trap-door Spider. 261 
with it, as is invariably the case here. Unfortunately the spider connected 
with this nest has been destroyed by insects. If the trap-door of this nest 
is a fair specimen of the West India type referred to by Moggridge (pages 
80 and 1838), as a ‘‘ single-door wafer nest,’’ then clearly there is no difference 
between it and many of the trap-doors of the Oamaru nests now before you 
except in the strength of the material, which is no doubt due to the effects 
of the tropical climate. There are great differences between the nests from 
the two places, but none in the general type of trap-door, and this illus- 
trates what I stated near the beginning of my paper, that the distinctions 
put forward by Moggridge of ‘“ single-door cork nests,” and ‘ single-door 
wafer nests,” is not a good one, especially as he says that ‘ the single-door 
wafer nest is only known, at present, in the West India Islands.” If this 
turns out to be a good distinction it will indeed be remarkable that this type 
should only be found at two such extreme points on the Globe, as Jamaica 
and New Zealand. In this nest there is nothing of the short spur-shaped 
enlargement referred to by Moggridge, as sometimes characterises the 
West India nests. I may point out too, that the Jamaica nests described 
by Gosse, and quoted by Moggridge, have evidently not “ wafer-like doors,” 
merely “lying on,” rather than fitting into the aperture of the tube’’ for 
he (Gosse) says: ‘The mouth of the tube is commonly dilated a little, so 
as to form a slightly recurved brim or lip ; and the lid is sometimes a little 
convex internally, so as to fall more accurately into the mouth and close 
it.” 
Distribution in New Zealand. e 
On the question of distribution, I may state that, though I have found 
them only in the Oamaru district, I have been told they have been got as 
far south as Palmerston, in Shag Valley, and in Auckland. In the latter 
place I have only lieard of their being found in scoria walls. My brother, 
Mr. Justice Gillies, after seeing these nests and spiders, when on a visit 
here recently, wrote me that his little boy had found a nest in the scoria 
walls of his garden at Mount Eden. I do not think they are obtainable round 
about Dunedin, as I have often looked unsuccessfully for them, and my im- 
pression is that they will not be found in any of the heavy cold clay lands - 
south of Dunedin. In Oamaru and Shag Valley the soil is a light sandy 
clay, or silt, resting on a dry bottom, generally of limestone, and it is in 
such warm lands only, that, I suspect, this sub-tropical species of spider 
has survived. If this species is limited to certain districts by the supply of 
food, and by its enemies only, then, obviously, there can be no reason on 
this score why they should not be found in greater abundance almost any- 
where else in Otago and New Zealand than in the Oamaru district. I 
rather incline to the opinion that this species will be found to be limited by 
