SPIDERS. 363 



of this door-tapestry are prolonged, and strongly at- 

 tached to the upper side of the entrance, forming an 

 excellent hinge, which when pushed open by the 

 spider, shuts again by its own weight, without the 

 aid of spring hinges. When the spider is at home, 

 and her door forcibly opened by an intruder, she 

 pulls it strongly inwards, and even when half-opened 

 often snatches it out of the hand ; but when she is 

 foiled in this, she retreats to the bottom of her den, 

 as her last resource.* 



Rossi ascertained that the female of an allied species 

 (My gale sauvagesii, Latr.), found in Corsica, lived 

 in one of these nests with a numerous posterity. He 

 destroyed one of these doors to observe whether a 

 new one would be made, which it was : but it was 

 fixed immoveably, without a hinge ; the spider, no 

 doubt, fortifying herself in this manner till she thought 

 she might re-open it without danger, t 



" The Rev. Revett Shepherd has often noticed, 

 in the fen ditches of Norfolk, a very large spider 

 (the species not yet determined) which actually 

 forms a raft for the purpose of obtaining its prey 

 with more facility. Keeping its station upon a ball 

 of weeds about three inches in diameter, probably 

 held together by slight silken cords, it is wafted 

 along the surface of the water upon this floating 

 island, which it quits the moment it sees a drowning 

 insect. The booty thus seized it devours at leisure 

 upon its raft, under which it retires when alarmed by 

 any danger."! In tne spring of 1830, we found a 

 spider on some reeds in the Croydon Canal, which 

 agreed in appearance with Mr. Shepherd's. 



Among our native spiders there are several besides 



* Mem. Soc. d'Hist Nat. de Paris, An. vii. 

 t Ibid. p. 125, and Latrcille, Hist. Nat. G&nti. viii. p. 163. 

 Kirby and Spencc, Intr. i. 425. 



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