Arachnida. 



8587 



Neriene bifida. 



Male, adult. Length ] -ninth of an inch. Length of cephalotho- 

 rax 1-seventeenth. Relative length of legs, 1 — 4, 2, 3. 



Cephalothorax depressed and indented in the medial line of the 

 hinder part. Ocular region considerably and abruptly elevated, 

 the upper part of the elevation being divided longitudinally into 

 two segments by a deep cleft or notch. Colour yellowish red. 



Eyes on deep black spots, four being placed nearly in a square on 

 each of the segments of the frontal eminence. The outer eye 

 of the front of each square is the largest, and the inner one the 

 smallest of the eight. The eyes of the inner sides of the squares 

 are further apart than those of the outer sides, which are very 

 near together, but not quite contiguous. 



Legs moderately long, and furnished with hairs, but no spines. 

 The first pair is, if anything, rather longer than the fourth. 

 Their colour is clear bright yellow. The femoral joints of the 

 first pair are disproportionately stout and bent forwards at the 

 extremities ; the tibial joints of the same pair are also stout, 

 and enlarged underneath towards their extremities, which are 

 bent in a direction contrary to the bend in the femoral joints. 

 The short joint connecting the tibial and femoral joints is stout 

 and enlarged at its front extremity. The hairs on the enlarge- 

 ment of the tibial joints are long and fine. 



Falces strong, straight, rather enlarged at their base, and like the 

 cephalothorax in colour. 



Maxillae greatly dilated at their base, strongly inclined towards the 

 labium, and similar in colour to the falces. 



Labium and sternum darker coloured than the cephalothorax. 



Palpi long and stout, remarkable in the form of the different joints. 

 The humeral joint is very strong, and gradually enlarges from 

 its base to its upper end, where, on its upper side rather 

 towards the inner margin, it has a strong spur slightly directed 

 backwards, and near this spur are a number of short, strong, 

 sharp-pointed, black spines. The cubital joint is short and 

 gouty. The radial joint has a long projection on its inner side, 

 curving obliquely outwards over the digital joint, to the surface 

 of which it closely applies, reaching almost to its extremity : 

 this projection issues from the extremity of the joint. Above it, 

 and issuing from the base of the joint, is a second strong pro- 

 jection, pointed at its extremity, but scarcely half the length of 



