SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 



i39 



Cephalo-thorax pale yellow. Digital joint with a 

 posterior prominence furnished with a compact tuft 

 of hairs. A rare species. 



Tmeticus warburtonii Cb. 

 Very closely allied to T. scopiger Grube, and de- 

 scribed " Proceedings of Dorset Fie'd Club," vol. x. 



Tmeticus finitimus Cb. [Tapinopa Jinitima 

 in " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 2.5 mm. 



Height of clypeus equal to the diameter of an 

 anterior central eye. Extremely rare. 



Tmeticus contritus Cb. [Linyphia contrita 



in " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 2 mm. 



An extremely rare species described and figured 

 in "Trans. Linn. Soc," xxviii. 



Tmeticus abnormis Bl. [Linyphia abnormis 

 + L. lingnata + L. decipiens + Neriene douglani 

 in " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 3 mm., female 4 mm. 



Cephalo-thorax and legs of a pale brownish-yellow 

 ■colour, often tinged with red. Radial joint not 

 longer than cubital. Digital joint as long as the 

 .cubital and radial joints together. A rare species. 



Tmeticus huthwaitii Cb. {Neriene huth- 

 ivaitii + N. formidabilis in " Spiders of Dorset.") 



ILength. Male nearly 4 mm. 



May be distinguished from T. abnormis Bl. by the 

 rradial joint being much longer than the cubital, and 

 the digital shorter than the radial. Extremely rare. 



Tmeticus montigena L. Koch. [Neriene rudis 

 Cb. in " Spiders of Dorset." Tmeticus niger F.O.P. 

 Cb.) Radial joint concave, produced above, remind- 

 ing one somewhat of Hilaira uncata Cb., but less 

 pointed. A rare spider. 



Tmeticus affinis Bl. [Neriene affinis in 

 " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 3.5 mm. 



Palpi very long, the digital joint being very small, 

 scarcely wider than the radial. Male with a strong 

 tooth near middle of inner side of falces. Very rare. 



Tmeticus neglectus Cb. An extremely rare 

 species, described and figured in Ann. Scot. Nat. 

 Hist., 1894. 



Tmeticus experttis Cb. [Linyphia experta in 

 " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 3 mm. 



Palpal organs with a long, semitransparent process, 

 terminated by a tuft of short bristles towards their 

 base on the inner side. Very rare. 



Tmetietis arcanus Cb. [Linyphia arcana in 

 " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length; Male 2.5 mm. 



Cephalo-thorax and legs yellow. Abdomen dull 

 yellowish-brown. Extremely rare. 



Tmeticus bicolor Bl. [Linyphia bicolor in 

 " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 4 mm., female 5 mm. 



Radial joint with a prominence towards its fore 

 part supporting a tuft of long, black, serrate bristles. 

 The commonest species of the genus. 



Tmeticus conciimus Thor. 



Extremely closely allied to T. bicolor. It is usually 

 considerably smaller. The tibial joints of the first 

 and second legs are each furnished with a double row 

 of from two to four spines, whereas in T. bicolor Bl. 

 there is a double row of from four to seven spines. 

 By some authorities this species is considered as 

 merely a variety of T. bicolor. 



Tmeticus sylvatieus Bl. [Neriene sylvatica 

 in " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 6 mm. 



Falces with a row of small spines upon the outer 

 part of the front side. Palpal organs with a strong 

 falciform process serrate at its outer edge. Rare. 



Tmeticus prudens Cb. ( Linyphia prudens in 

 " Spiders of Dorset.") 



Length. Male 2.5 mm., female larger. 



Posterior row of eyes procurved. Digital joint 

 with a small pointed prominence near its base towards 

 the outer side. Not common. 



Tmeticus simplex F.O.P. Cb. 

 Length. Male 3 mm., female larger. 

 Most easily distinguished by the form of the radial 

 joint of the male palpus, which is figured. 



Tmeticus carpenterii Cb. 



An extremely rare species described and figured in 

 Proc. Dorset Field Club, vol. xv. 



( To be contimied. ) 



Sctence Research in France. — It is stated 

 by the Paris correspondent of the "Lancet" that 

 authority has been given for the formation of a 

 fund for scientific research. It is to be subject to 

 the control of the Ministry of Public Instruction, 

 and is to be managed by a council assisted by a 

 technical commission. The income of the fund 

 will be derived from (1) grants made by the 

 Government, by the departments, by the communes, 

 by the colonies, and by other sections of the 

 population ; (2) donations and bequests ; (3) indi- 

 vidual or collective subscriptions ; (4) grants de- 

 ducted from the portion of the proceeds of the 

 pari-mntuel assigned to philanthropic or charitable 

 purposes locally. The annual amount of these grants 

 will not be less than £5,000, but the exact sum 

 will be fixed each year, on the application of the 

 council of management, by the special commission 

 held at the Ministry of Agriculture. The fund 

 will be divided into two sections for the promotion 

 of purely scientific work relative (a) to the dis- 

 covery of new methods of treatment of the diseases 

 which attack man, domestic animals, and cultivated 

 plants ;" {¥) to the discovery, apart from medical 

 science, of laws governing natural phenomena. 



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