. American spiders and their spinning work. A natural history of the orbweaving spiders of the United States, with special regard to their industry and habits. Spiders. 118 AMERICAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNINGWORK. is formed in July and is round, one-fourth inch in diameter, and bluish or greenish blue in color. It is loosely covered with silk and fastened to tlie lower side of a leaf, the edges of wliich are bound together, so as to pro- tect iV (Fig. 121.) Theridium varians pairs in June, and in July tlic female constructs several globular cocoons of dull white silk, of a loose texture, the l
. American spiders and their spinning work. A natural history of the orbweaving spiders of the United States, with special regard to their industry and habits. Spiders. 118 AMERICAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNINGWORK. is formed in July and is round, one-fourth inch in diameter, and bluish or greenish blue in color. It is loosely covered with silk and fastened to tlie lower side of a leaf, the edges of wliich are bound together, so as to pro- tect iV (Fig. 121.) Theridium varians pairs in June, and in July tlic female constructs several globular cocoons of dull white silk, of a loose texture, the largest of which measui-es about one-seventh of an inch in diameter. Therid- They are attached to objects situated near the upper part of the mm van- ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^ contain, according to their size, from twenty to sixty spherical eggs, of a yellowish white color, not adlierent among themselves. 2 (Fig. 122.) Withered leaves, dried moss, and particles of indurated earth are generally disposed about the cocoons.^ This habit, which, as will be seen further on, prevails largely in other families, appears to have but slight hold upon the cocooning instincts of the Lineweavers. The little bronze colored spiders belonging chiefly to the genus Eri- gone, weave their cocoons within the balled mass of intersecting lines which form their snare and abode. I have seen numberless examples of these webs, made manifest by the morning dews along the Delaware, shining over the entire external foli- age of a large spruce tree from top- most to lowest bough. Again, they will be seen with other Theridioid webs, glittering in the slanting sun- light on myriads of bunched grass tops, timothy heads, and weed toj)S. Some species of Erigone make a lit- tle balled cocoon similar to those of Theridium first described, and similarly held within the snare. Another form of cocoon which I attrib- ute to a spider of the same genus is a minute white button shaped or •. double convex bag, from one-sixteenth to o
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectspiders, bookyear1889
