92 



THE BRITISH NATURALIST. 



[May 



as throughout the whole animal kingdom we find the principles of 

 anabolism and katabolism associated with the female and male sexes 

 and habits respectively, just as we find the males comparatively active 

 and the females passive, so we are justified in supposing that the same 

 law held good in the past, and that the first true flying feathered 

 reptile or bird was a male. 



(To he continued.) 



Arachnida. 



Spider Notes. 



New Spiders. — It is possible that some of your readers who may 

 take some interest in spider lore may be glad to hear something of 

 what has been done in arachnology during the past year. 



Several fine additions have been made to the British list, which 

 numbers now close upon 530 species. A very fine species of wheel- 

 web spiders — Epeim regia, C.K., closely allied to E. angulata, Clk., 

 of the female sex— was taken near Exeter, sitting in the centre of its 

 large web on the furze bushes ; and a fine species of Tegenaria — T. 

 larva, Sim., has been received from Ireland. Amongst the smaller 

 sized spiders, a Tmeticus — T. nigar, F.Cb., new to science, and another 

 pretty, little, very distinct spider, Leptyphantes (Linyphia) pinicola, 

 Sim., were captured by the writer up on Mount Helvellyn. 



There are some other additions to the British list beside these, 

 of which descriptions will be published in due course. The two 

 Helvellyn captures have been figured and described, together with 

 several other obscure species, in "Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist." for Jan., 1891. 



In a future number I shall hope to have something to say about 

 some rarer species of British spiders which have been taken during 

 the past year. - 



Of new books which have appeared, an American work by Dr. 

 McCook, of Philadelphia, occupies the first place from a popular point 

 of view. It is beautifully illustrated, and contains an amazing amount 

 of valuable information, new and old, on the habits of spiders. A 

 small but very valuable contribution to our knowledge of the spinning 

 glands of Epcira diademata, Bl., has been made by Mr. Cecil \\'ar- 

 burton, of Christ's College, Cambridge ; and the inodus operandi of 

 line spinning— a matter very difficult to mvestigate — has been cleverly 

 dealt with. 



