504 



DRASSID.E. 



The family of the Drassidse is spread over the greater part of the world. They all have a 

 rather remarkable habit of concealing- themselves, not in holes or crevices, but in silken cells, 

 spun by themselves among leaves, under stones, in chinks of walls, and, in hue, wherever their 

 instinct leads them. They are active creatures, and catch their prey by fair chase, in one 

 instance even pursuing the victim beneath the surface of the water. 



The species shown at Fig. B never attains to any great size, two-fifths of an inch seeming 

 to be the ordinary length of a female, the male, of course, measuring rather less. It generally 

 resides under stones, and but for that habit would be seen oftener than is now the case. The 

 cocoon of the female is pure white, and contains rather more than one hundred eggs of a very r 

 pale yellow color. The cocoon is then placed in a larger sac, also made of white silk, and 

 placed in a hole in the ground. The mother spider generally includes herself in this second 

 sac. The color is alike in both sexes, being of a pale reddish -brown. 



At Fig. F. is shown another species of the same genus, and at Fig. E is drawn a portion 

 of a twig, showing the manner in which the female deposits her eggs. The reader will 

 probably have seen these curious little egg pyramids on the branches of various trees. This 

 species is very small, the male measuring barely the eighth of an inch in length. It is rather 

 prettily colored. The limbs are buff, with a large patch of chocolate-brown on the first two 



A. Chtbiona holosericea. (Male.) 



B. Drassus c&preus. 



C. Brassvs cupj'eus. (Nest in dried leaf.) 



O. Clotho durdndii. 



D. Clvbi&na Itolosprirea. (Female.) 



E. Drassus micans. (Esgt*.) 



F. Drassus micans. 



pairs. The cephalo-thorax is ruddy leaf-brown, with six white streaks, their points converging 

 to a spot in the central line. The abdomen is deep black in the shade, but when the light 

 shines upon it, various iridescent hues of purple, green, and copper are given out, rendering 

 the creature a really beautiful species. The name of "micans," or glittering, is applied to the 

 creature on account of its changing colors. 



At Figs. A and I) are shown the two sexes of a curious and prettily marked spider of 

 moderate dimensions, the female measuring nearly half an inch in length. 



Tins species is mostly found in well-wooded districts, living in a pretty white silken 

 house, which it spins under the shelter of rough bark or shady leaves. The cocoon containing 

 the egos is placed in this cell, and affectionately tended by the parent. The cocoon is also 

 made of white silk, and generally contains rather more than one hundred spherical eggs. 

 These are very pale yellow in color, and laid loosely in the cocoon. The cephalo-thorax of this 

 species is pale dull green, and the abdomen is soft silken gray, with a peculiar velvety lustre, 

 produced by the dense clothing of hair with which it is covered. The specific name "holo- 

 sericea," signifies silken, and is therefore very appropriately given to the species. 



Another species of this genus is termed Clubiona nutrix. It is rather larger than the 

 generality of the Clubionas, being nearly three-quarters of an inch in length. The reader must 

 understand that the length is exclusive of the limbs, and is measured from the front of the 

 cephalo-thorax to the end of the abdomen. This is a verv rare creature. 



