Pree = el 
THE RAY SPIDER AND HER SNARE. 205 
tute of the calamistrum and cribellum, which are always associated with 
this character of spinningwork, it was hardly possible that the spiral arma- 
ture could have been of this sort. However, I was not able to testify on 
the subject with that assurance which seemed to me desirable. It is cer- 
tainly possible for one to be deceived by even an ordinarily careful exam- 
ination. The webs of Theridiosoma are so habitually placed in 
dark cavities and shaded locations, and in positions that often 
extremely embarrass the observer, that on this ground alone one 
would be liable to mistake. Again, I have often noticed that even the 
simple lines of Theridium will be found covered with particles of dust 
and the spherical grains of pollen, which at a casual glance present very 
much the appearance of beads. More than once I have been drawn into 
a second and third examination by this deceiving resemblance. Moreover, 
I had limited my original examination to the use of a hand lens, and had 
not made the more careful microscopic test which would have placed the 
matter beyond doubt. I therefore resolyed to reéxamine the subject before 
a final expression of opinion. 
An opportunity to do so did not present until the 8th of July, 1889. 
In the vicinity of Wallingford, Pennsylvania, in a shaded ravine covered 
with a wild growth of natural 
plants that overhang a stream of R 
clear running spring water (Doe’s 
Run), I found a number of this SwefoeOccccsooocccesocses S 
species, and made a thorough S 2a) S 
study of the point in question. I 
took with me apparatus by which 
portions of the web could be sep- Fic. 199. Beaded spirals on the snare of Theridiosoma 
. gemmosum. (Magnified.) 
arated and placed under the micro- 
scope. Thus tested, in three separate snares, I was able to determine be- 
yond doubt that the spiral line of Theridiosoma is precisely like that of 
Epeira. The beads upon several strings, that is, the several portions be- 
tween two radii, were counted, in one case numbering sixty-four. I was 
able to make satisfactory drawings of these beads, Fig. 199. 
The behavior of the web upon the frames and glass cups was_pre- 
cisely like that of Epeira, the beads melting upon the surface of the 
glass, and the string remaining as a simple line in the midst of 
The Spir- the viscid mass. The beads reflected light; in appearance ex- 
Puce actly resembled those of Epeira, and in some cases the cord upon 
‘which they were attached was distinctly seen running through 
them. Further, I examined portions of the snare upon which small insects 
had been caught, and these showed in every respect the manner of entan- 
glement which I have so frequently observed with the true Orbweavyers. 
(Fig. 200.) Previous to removing the sections from the webs, I tested 
them with the tip of a blade of grass, to which the lines adhered very 
Grounds 
for Doubt. 
“ -. : — 
-" ee a ne a 
