304 A SPIDER'S NEST. 



of ah inch broad, is frequently seen, having a process 

 at the end of its front claws similar to that at the end 

 of the scorpion's tail, and when the bulbous portion of 

 it is pressed, the poison may be seen oozing out from 

 the point. 



We have also spiders in the south which seize their 

 prey by leaping upon it from a distance of several inches. 

 When alarmed, they can spring about a foot away from 

 the object of their own fear. Of this kind there are 

 several varieties. 



A large reddish spider (My gale) obtains its food in a 

 different manner than either patiently waiting in ambush, 

 or by catching it with a bound. It runs about with great 

 velocity in and out, behind and around every object, 

 searching for what it may devour, and, from its size and 

 rapid motions, excites the horror of every stranger. I 

 never knew it to do any harm except frightening the 

 nervous, and I believe few could look upon it for the first 

 time without feeling himself in danger. It is named by 

 the natives " selali," and is belived to be the maker of 

 a hinged cover for its nest. You see a door, about the 

 size of a shilling, lying beside a deep hole of nearly similar 

 diameter. The inside of the door lying upwards, and 

 which attracts your notice, is of a pure white silky sub- 

 stance, like paper. The outer side is coated over with 

 earth, precisely like that in which the hole is made. If you 

 try to lift it, you rind it is fastened by a hinge on one side, 

 and, if it is turned over upon the hole, it fits it exactly, 

 and the earthy side being then uppermost, it is quite 

 impossible to detect the situation of the nest. Un- 

 fortunately, this cavity for breeding is never seen, except 

 when the owner is out, and has left the door open behind 

 her. 



In some parts of the country there are great numbers 

 of a large beautiful yellow-spotted spider, the webs of 

 which are about a yard in diameter. The lines on which 

 these webs are spun are suspended from one tree to 

 another, and are as thick as coarse thread. The fibres 

 radiate from a central point, where the insect waits for 

 its prey. The webs are placed perpendicularly, and a 

 common occurrence in walking is to get the face enveloped 

 in them as a lady is in a veil. 



Another kind of spider lives in society, and forms so 

 great a collection of webs placed at every angle, that the 



