. 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. yellow, glossy silk, and so abundant as to make quite a ribbon. Here the threads are carried around both sides of a projecting twig, as though the spider mother had purposely availed herself of this mechanical advantage, and are additionally strengthened by being crossed or twisted as they pass around the branch to which the cocoon is attached. The outer envelope is in color a very dark yellowish brown, and is of extraordinary
. 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. yellow, glossy silk, and so abundant as to make quite a ribbon. Here the threads are carried around both sides of a projecting twig, as though the spider mother had purposely availed herself of this mechanical advantage, and are additionally strengthened by being crossed or twisted as they pass around the branch to which the cocoon is attached. The outer envelope is in color a very dark yellowish brown, and is of extraordinary stiffness. When cut 9pen the bowl is found to contain a ball of white silken floss, within which the eggs are deposited. This ball is fastened to a very tough twisted cord, fig. 82. cocoon ofCyrtarachnecomigera (natural that J)aSSes up through the neck (Fig. »'^e), in site upon a twig. F.,;.83. interior i 1 " \ o view of same. 83), and which is the line by which the egg ball was susijended before the outer flask was spun around it. The texture of the external shell has every appearance, under the lens, of having been hardened by means of a viscid secretion applied to it by the spider; the toughness is evidently not the result of simple weaving. Another example of Cornigera's cocoon is drawn at Fig. 84. The manner in which the bowl of the vase shaped object is seated upon the twig and lashed by a ribbon is there well shown. The top of the stalk is stayed by various lines wrapped about a neighboring twig. Epeira labyrinthea belongs to the small group of Orbweavers that spin compound snares; that is, snares in which the orb is associated with a well developed retitelarian snare.' The labyrinth of crossed lines is placed behind and above the orb, and within this the spider has her dwelling, commonly beneath a dry leaf; here also she suspends her string of cocoons, placing them near her tent, and usually above it and to one side, as represented in Fig. 85. It consists of sever
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectspiders, bookyear1889
