SOME NOTES ON SPIDEES 
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probably never been touched as far as this country is 
concerned ? 
Spiders are rather difficult to collect, as one soon finds out 
by experience. But we are aided in our collecting in this 
country by a species of ‘ Mason Wasp ’ which builds its mud 
nest in or about our houses and lays up a store of spiders as 
food for its young inside the chambers of its nest. 
A short time ago I observed a Mason Wasp building a nest 
on the corner of an unmounted water-colour painting hanging 
on the wall of my bedroom. After several days the nest had 
reached such large proportions that it was necessary to put a 
stop to the insect’s work to save the picture from being damaged. 
To my surprise, when the nest was removed, I found it con- 
tained some 200 spiders, all of which had been stupefied by the 
sting of the wasp. Only spiders had been collected ; no 
insects were found. 
A large percentage had lost a leg or two, probably in their 
struggles with their enemy or from the close way they were 
packed together inside the nest, literally like sardines in a box. 
Most of the specimens were web-making spiders, although 
I obtained a few jumping or hunting spiders and one form 
resembling an Orb Spinner, which unfortunately had lost a leg, 
but hat been mounted on a slide, pending obtaining a better 
specimen. 
Pig. I is a photo-micrograph of a small female web -spinning 
spider magnified about twelve times and which is very 
common in Nairobi. 
Fig. II is a male of the hunting variety magnified about 
four times and was obtained from the wasp’s nest. 
Spiders differ from insects by being divided into two parts, 
called the cephalothorax and abdomen, whereas the insect 
has a head, thorax, and abdomen. The cephalothorax of the 
spider represents both head and thorax in one. 
Their eyes are all simple (not compound) and number from 
six to eight ; they vary in size and position and are of great 
help in classifying species. The web-making spiders have 
their eyes in a double row on the upper surface of the cephalo- 
thorax, while the hunting or jumping spider has usually three 
rows of eyes. 
