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CHAPTER XXXI. 
MISCELLANEA. 
The Raft Spider — Why so called — Mode of obtaining prey — Mice and their 
homes — The Campagnol or Harvest Mouse — Its general habits — Its winter 
and summer nest — Its storehouse and provisions — Entrance to the nest — The 
Wood Mouse and its nest — Uses of the Field Mice — The Domestic Mouse 
— Various nests — Rapidity of nest-building — A nest in a bottle — The cell of 
the Queen Termite — Its entrances and exits — Size of the inmates — The 
Clothes Moths and their various species — Habitations of the Clothes Moth, 
and the method of formation and enlargement — The Elk and its winter 
home — The snow fortress and its leaguers — Its use, advantages, and dangers 
— The Albatros and its mode of nesting — Strange scenes — The Edible 
Swallow — Its mode of nesting — Origin of its name — Description of the nest 
--The Eagle and its mode of nesting — Difficulty of reaching the eyrie — The 
Nightingale and its nest — Other ground-building birds and their temporary 
homes — The Noddy — Perilous position of the eggs, and young — The Coot, 
and its semi-aquatic nest. 
In this, the concluding chapter, are described sundry habitations 
which cannot well be classed in any of the previously mentioned 
groups, and which present some peculiarities which render them 
worthy of a separate notice. 
The reader will remember that the water spider is in the 
habit of constructing beneath the water a permanent home, to 
which it retires with the prey which it has caught, and in which 
it brings up its young. There is another spider which frequents 
the water, but which only makes a temporary and moveable 
residence. This is the Raft Spider (JDolomedes fimbriatus ) 
which is represented in the illustration of its natural size. 
As may be seen by reference to the figure, it is a large species, 
being, indeed, one of the largest British spiders, its size depend- 
ing more upon the dimensions of the body than the length of 
the limbs. It is a remarkably handsome spider, its general 
