118 AMERIGAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNINGWORK. 
In the group of Epeiras with hub meshed snares, the most remarkable 
in appearance is Epeira insularis. The bright yellow markings upon the 
back of the abdomen, and the orange legs with their brown rings 
The Insu- distinguish her as one of the most beautiful of her genus. She 
lar Spider, : , ; ; 4 : 
ipuira attains even greater size than Strix and Sclopetaria, and in the 
insularis, late summer and fall, when the female is full of eggs, appears 
quite formidable. Hentz named her from the fact that he dis- 
covered her upon an island of the Tennessee River. She is however widely 
distributed, having been traced as far south as Georgia and South Carolina, 
through the great Middle-Western and Middle States, as far to the northwest 
as Wisconsin, and throughout New England. She is very abundant in Ohio, 
Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, in woods, groves, and out grounds, and inva- 
riably domiciles upon shrubs, bushes, and bushy trees, commonly choosing 
a well elevated site, within seven or eight feet from the ground. If we 
admit the identity of this spider with the European Epeira marmorea, the 
distribution is vastly widened, and this fine species must be enrolled among 
those which probably inhabit the entire northern hemisphere. 
The snare of the adult is a large orb of the type heretofore described ; 
several measurements of which are as follows (in inches): 18x11, 14x14, 
20x14, 14x14, 8x6. That which especially distinguishes In- 
sularis from the foregoing group is the well nigh unvarying habit 
of living in a nest of rolled leaves situated above the orb, and 
attached thereto by a trapline. This varies in length according to the 
size and situation of the snare; it will frequently be found about seven 
inches long. At one end it is held by the spider’s outstretched claws as 
she sits within her tent; at the other end it is fastened to or near the 
margin of the hub, or notched zone, by a little delta of diverging termini. 
These slightly pull up the centre of the web and thus tighten the radii; 
the trapline itself being held quite taut, the motions of struggling insects 
are readily communicated to the vigilant watcher within her leafy sentry 
box. Just beneath the nest, and serving to brace it, may often be found a 
wide and irregular netting of lines, communicating with surrounding objects 
but rarely extending far downward toward the snare. 
The Shamrock spider, Epeira trifolium, received its name from the tri- 
foil or clover like markings upon the back of the abdomen, which is a 
whitish, whitish gray, or purplish color. The legs in the typical 
The form are ringed with black, and most species are so marked, but 
Snares of 
Insularis. 
sae I have taken specimens in which the legs were a uniform orange 
Spider. color. The abdomen of the adult female becomes strongly marked,. 
especially along the sides, with bright red. One individual was 
collected whose abdomen was quite white, but after a period of confinement 
gradually turned to a dull brown. Another was well marked with black 
patterns, but also finally came out with shades of red and yellow. The 
Shamrock spider is somewhat more robust in form than her above named 
