37 



most authors for the next species, M. Menardi — a custom which, 

 though decidedly wrong, is too deeply rooted to be easily amended — 

 is also a reason for not hypercritically rejecting the name Meriance. — 

 Conf. next following species, M. Menardi Westr. 



Walckenaeb's Ep. antriada may, it seems to me, with perfect 

 certainty be registered as a s) 7 nonym for M. Meriawe. "Cette espece," 

 says he (Ins. Apt., II, p. 83), "ressemble beaucoup a l'lncline'e (Meta 

 segmentata (Clerck)) par sa forme et par la figure qui est sur le dos 

 de l'abdomen; mais elle est plus forte, et a ... des points noir sur 

 les misses. — Elle fait une toile incline'e a Fentrfo des soupiranx, 

 des caves, et des lieux obscurs. Cette araneide fait aussi souvent 

 une toile verticale parallele aux murs dans l'interieur des caves." 

 All this exactly suits M. Meriance, but, as regards size and haunts, 

 does not suit Meta muraria C. Kocn (Die Arachn. , VIII, p. 125, 

 Taf. CCLXXXVIII, figg. 693,694), which Blackwall considers to be 

 the same as E. antriada, but which has neither by Koch nor Menge 

 been found in cellars, but on old walls, and which is stated to be 

 of about the same size as M. segmentata. 



As regards Blackwall's Ep. antriada and Ep. celata, I cannot 

 believe, that they really are, as he states, separate species. With 

 respect to their form, the descriptions indicate no other difference 

 than that E. celata is something smaller than E. antriada: as to 

 the colour, the only essential difference seems to be, that E. celata 

 has a longitudinal yellow stripe on the back of the abdomen, which 

 is absent in E. antriada. The individuals most frequently met with 

 of Meta Meriance are precisely like Blackwall's figures of E. antriada; 

 but both Westbing and Koch (Die Arachn., VIII, p. 122) describe 

 a variety with a yellow longitudinal stripe on the abdomen. I have 

 myself a specimen of this in our parts somewhat rare variety, and 

 cannot discover in it any other deviation whatever from Meta Meriancr. 

 Even the figures given by Blackwall of the males' palpi in E. an- 

 triada and E. celata are so like, that is seems impossible that they 

 can be referred to two different species. They fully agree with the 

 palpi of M. Meriance ri% in which the clava is just such as it is 

 represented for E. celata. In the figure representing the palpus of 

 E. antriada cf , the lamina bulbi is at the apex drawn out at an 

 angle, whereas in E. celata (as also in M. Meriance') it is rounded 

 off uniformly; but this is certainly but an inaccuracy of drawing, for the 

 descriptions do not indicate either that or any other difference in 

 the form of the palpi. — Cambridge, who sent me from England 



