BRITISH SPIDERS. 



8i 



CASE closed above, open below, thickly covered externally with bits of 

 indurated earth, small stones, and withered leaves and flowers, 

 which are incorporated with it, and is suspended perpendicularly, 

 by lines attached to its sides and apex, and is surrounded by its 

 irregular snare. In the upper part of the tent the female spins 

 several minute globular cocoons of yellowish-white silk, of a slight 

 texture, containing each from twenty to sixty small spherical eggs, 

 of a pale yellowish-white colour. The young remain with the 

 ■ mother for a long period after quitting the cocoons, and are 

 B provided by her with food, which consists chiefly of ants. 



Theridion lineatum {Walck.). 



Usually pale greenish or yel- 

 lowish white, tricked off with 

 delicate black lines ; but it is 

 variable in colour, and in some 

 individuals has a bright crimson 

 oval or linear space on the abdo- 

 men. It provides for the safety 

 of its cocoon (which is globular 

 and formed of blueish white or 

 greenish blue silk) by fastening 

 it to the surface of a leaf and 

 curling the edges of the leaf over 

 it, as here shown. 



Cocoon of Theridion lineatum. Copied from 

 Mr. Blackwall's figure. 



Theridion fallens {BL). 



A small pale-coloured species. The female has a brown irre- 

 gular semilunar mark enclosing white on the back of the abdo- 

 men ; the male has a dark stripe down 

 the middle of the thorax, and a dark 

 bro^\Ti irregular mark on the abdomen. 



We notice this species for the sake 

 of its cocoon, which may often be seen 

 on the under side of leaves of shrubs 



Cocoon of Theridion pallens, on part 

 of an oak leaf. 



