. Nature sketches in temperate America, a series of sketches and a popular account of insects, birds, and plants, treated from some aspects of their evolution and ecological relations . ot be accommodation for the night-flying moths, which depend upon such flowersfor their honey. And were it not for these flowers,what would become of the yellow and rose-colored moth whichfrequents the half-open blossoms in daytime for the protectionit there enjoys by its harmonious coloring ? Again, how littledo these insect guests of the evening primrose suspect thatwithin the delicate flower petals an invisi
. Nature sketches in temperate America, a series of sketches and a popular account of insects, birds, and plants, treated from some aspects of their evolution and ecological relations . ot be accommodation for the night-flying moths, which depend upon such flowersfor their honey. And were it not for these flowers,what would become of the yellow and rose-colored moth whichfrequents the half-open blossoms in daytime for the protectionit there enjoys by its harmonious coloring ? Again, how littledo these insect guests of the evening primrose suspect thatwithin the delicate flower petals an invisible animated trapsometimes awaits their coming, which in a twinkling andwithout warning literally catches them in the jaws of of this secret trap may not be found in everyevening primrose. In fact, I examined many of the flowersof these plants before discovering the remarkable secret trapreferred to. Those who have not witnessed it certainly have somethinginteresting in store for them. In the wild sandy meadowwhere the primrose plants are abundant, I have seen a deadmoth, a fly, or perhaps a bee lying on the open flower, or below ANIMAL BEHAVIOR, WITH EXAMPLES 183. it on the ground. When exam-ining more closely into the causeof this insect carnage, I havebeen utterly taken by surprise onlifting one of these insects to find itin the grasp of an almost invisible, yel-lowish white spider. I had passed the deadinsects on the flowers many times before I had seen the wonder is it, then, that I had not seen her before. She has elongated front legs, and a peculiar inclination towalk sideways or backwards with equal facility, and throughthis resemblance to a crabs gait she is sometimes called thecrab-spider, Misumena vatia. Having become familiar withher appearance, her attainments are more readily the early part of September, one was detected in a flower ofthe evening primrose, in the attitude ready to seize her appearance was of such a
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectbirds, booksubjectins
