Readers' Nature Notes and Queries 



Spider lurtli works 



TheSB tiilcrcslme ohsci \ alums conic 



from Mi A- 6 Fellowsi oui fecwi 

 writei from Atabarilti RfflL Ch'fr- 



[BBS lowers in Queensland 



On n haic tft» in our lawn. I nolieed 



.1 small cunncl-«hccp9d nwonfl earth 



ptjmpDWd of rn.inv rounded ptllcls "I 

 c:u-ih. each about i" in .size, unci (Yum 

 toe A ciiu.lar wall which in eround 

 level WAS I" m diameter, but ill Us 

 hndicst puinl was I'," in dlaJlielei. I hi' 

 pelleis were in a smtte layer, hul seemed 

 well stuck together, frail though the 

 <.\ I n 1 1 1 • •aructau- appeared, laic In Ihe 



afternoon I visited the small oont agnm 

 10 see a uny spider about a quarter HtcJl 

 MTQfiS 'Is leg-spread, r/ipidlv tunning 

 around Ihe base i->f IBS eune secniinply 

 ifl ni:iny directions 



\lter several futile attempts I at last 

 made the liny spidei iuii oil to a urass- 

 slcnl which, with 8 quick ftjki dumped 

 die spider into its funnel shaped home. 

 It immediately t*n hull way up the »all- 

 <idc, down again, up and down attain 

 aild then disappeared into the i|iuilci 

 inch opening II ihe base. Ihe sum tftlpj 

 now much lower, showed Ihe finest of 

 web niiifii.il across the tone aboui 

 half way up Ihe wall. Also the SUP. 

 now shone on a network .if webbinc 

 jt i hi i K.I [he cone outside No woudci the 

 spider had been busy when I hist noticed 

 it* apparent haste I wo days later. Ihe 

 itfil cone htis been partly broken it 

 would >ecm by a sharp shower that 

 It'll during the nieht. 



\ second funnel had been efeclcd 

 one and a half inches away from the 

 fust, and ihe nrificc to Ihe lirst one 

 fi.ut been carefully sealed with earth 

 Incidcnlaliy Ihe bulk of each pcMcl used 

 m the construction of Ihe funnel would 

 be D linle larger than (he spider's over- 

 all >i/.e. 



What an enoirnin.x ;n ml i.f carih 



moving the small creature had accom- 

 plished and in such a short time, Beforc 

 placing a temporary roof over the 

 structure in case of another shower, t 

 tnuk two stcicoseopic colour phot u> 



lioni On* loot distance from Ihe filflrjU 

 lo Ohlflln detail ;» well as third dinien 

 sion. A search over ihe lawn Old m 

 show miv nioic such sliiicturcs TV, 

 uny spiilcr was practically black ,, 

 inlin.1 with only one whitish (DO) 

 llu base ol the abdomen. The licip.li 

 ol the funnel Ibal replaced tilt lii a £j| 

 W.i> .in inch and a half, it. tn|> ■ 1 1 ^ 

 inelci aboui Ihe same, its base no ninr< 

 than ball an inch. 



tHeircJIOWtM day, r.H'ly in Ihe 

 1 removed the "tOOv fro 



mm 

 'cab i 



appeiued I 



ing, 



two liiiuicls bin they 



same. 



However, in lale afleinoon, a lliin 

 (umiel iwo leet lioni ihe hist iwo, hiw 

 appealed md w is obviously very nen 

 About Ihe sdine si/;c a* Ihe lirst two. 

 il had been consliucled in ihe f.> 

 hours while I was absent .loins oilier 

 work This was tantalising In say Or 

 least: lo miv. such a spectacle. Atiolhct 

 «roT iMaccO this latter tunnel -als., 

 until ihe lollowmr day I .clu.ncJ || 

 Ihe vicinity U ""en as possible, lor 

 surely more was in he learnt nhom 



itiese hhhsubI swcmn* MtV wciujji 



four hours some very line sir. mils rjj 

 web criss.cr.ivsed the third funnel, hul 

 no reappearance of the i-pider had l.iXei 

 place About 1 fool from ihe [hjpj 

 tunnel a liny irapdoor spider htiJ 

 opened its dooi for hin,inesv and tin/ 

 irickleiilally also "grew" in the tiifln 

 Il is hoped dial as [ walch for ao ; , 

 change in the siiucliires menlioned, I 

 may learn more of ihese spiders' habit, . 



IMufypus plural? 



"Platypuse> " is ihe mt>st usiialb iimc 

 pilinkla Bud ls correcl li i* acceptable 

 too. in use Ihe ringUUM 1 form for (Ir. 

 plural also, as wnh "%h<fp' oi 'lidi' 

 How. ver it you must sound leirned b] 

 iisiiif a classical plnr il, "pliilvpi" i- 

 dchniiely wruue Kn RflM 11 QrCO 

 word, liie plural fotm Is "pkltyfkoUcl 

 prunoiinced in lorn syll.inles by voici"; 

 lite final "e". 



tFal.l 



Vicl Ndt. Vol 66 



