Cw a ee pee ee ee a ne oe 
: . , c. - te 
304. AMERICAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNINGWORK. 
snare hung among the foliage underneath. One would certainly think 
that a spider thus domiciled has secured for herself the highest attainable 
security and comfort within the compass of aranead nidification. At other 
times her den will be found within the point of a single leaf, which has 
been curled over and sewed together. 
It will thus be seen that the nesting habit of Thaddeus is closely re- 
lated to that of the group represented by Insularis and Trifolium, the 
principal difference being, that in the last named species the silken part 
of the structure seems to be rather the lining, while in the former the 
silken tent is quite distinct and the leaf shelter appears to be rather a 
secondary matter. At all events, no matter how complete may be the 
security afforded by the clustered leaves 
or rolled leaves, the cylindrical tent of 
Thaddeus may nearly always be found 
entire, and in a well secured retreat. 
In the case of Triaranea the use of 
the leaf in nidification is extremely 
rare. Such, at least, is the 
result of my own obserya- 
tions, although I should not 
be at all surprised to find that in 
other geographical provinces the spider 
may be found to resort to the aid of 
leaves and other material quite as free- 
ly as some of her cogeners. Neverthe- 
less, it is probable that the maze of 
netted lines within which she swings 
her bell shaped tent answers all the 
Fic. 280. Nest of Epeira thaddeus within leayes. purposes of a leafy protection, and 
The tube is shown uncovered atthe upper right gg long as her home is protected by 
hand of the cut. if a 
such an environment she will be less 
likely to resort to the additional protection of leaves. 
Be that as it may, her home is a silken dome, swung within a mass of 
netted lines supported upon the foliage of trees, or stayed upon the sur- 
rounding surfaces of her nest site. It is open downward toward the orb, 
to which the home is connected by the ordinary trapline. The mass ex- 
tends well below the mouth of the tent, and a little free space is usually 
left between the maze and the orb. Sometimes the tent is decidedly bell 
shaped, widest at the mouth, and is much larger than the occupant herself, 
as at Fig, 282. Again, I have scen a tubular passage way or vestibule ex- 
tending from the mouth of the nest entirely through the length of the 
maze, thus affording a sheltered passage for the spider along her trapline, 
well nigh to the point of approach to the orb at its hub. (See Chapter 
VIIL, Figs. 123, 132.) It often happens that Triaranea selects a site that 
Nest of 
Triaranea 
a) ae ae 
