THE VINEGAROON 269 



of an ant community is often called upon to 

 offer up a great number of individuals to satisfy 

 the appetite of these greedy pugnacious mon- 

 sters. Vinegaroons, that can get into wire fly 

 traps and are willing to remain in the "prison 

 perilous," kill a great number of flies and on 

 such a diet grow very fat and monstrously 

 large. 



The solpugids do not depend upon the aid of 

 any poison in bringing their captured prey into 

 submission as do the spiders. According to 

 Comstock, no poison glands are found and the 

 bite, outside of its mechanical effect, is harm- 

 less. 



These creatures seem to occupy an inter- 

 mediate position between scorpions and spiders, 

 but show in their anatomical structure a radical 

 departure from the structure of either of these. 

 The head and thorax are fused in one, and the 

 first pair of legs is joined to the head — a 

 most unusual position. The pedipalps (the 

 second pair of appendages lying on either side 

 of the mouth and which in scorpions serve as 

 pincers) are as long as the true legs and like 

 them are used as organs of locomotion. Through 



