. 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. DEATH AND ITS DISGUISES. 425 'Finis!" during this period, and the leaves were continually dropping from the vino, no change at all of any decided character occurred in the position. The lines maintained their strength and tension. The next day, however, showed a change. "October 22d. This morning the threads of Sexta's web have relaxed and broken, and the position is (juite changed. The abdomen is slirunken up, a mere
. 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. DEATH AND ITS DISGUISES. 425 'Finis!" during this period, and the leaves were continually dropping from the vino, no change at all of any decided character occurred in the position. The lines maintained their strength and tension. The next day, however, showed a change. "October 22d. This morning the threads of Sexta's web have relaxed and broken, and the position is (juite changed. The abdomen is slirunken up, a mere hard, dry shell October 24th. Fearing that Sexta would be carried off by the high wind and falling leaves, and wishing to preserve the body, I removed it from its lines, and the shriveled corpse now rests in my collection at the Phil- adelphia Academy of Natural Sciences. I have observed something of the same sort in spiders kept in oonfine- ment within my breeding boxes, where I had placed them for various observations, particularly to secure cocoons. I was sure to find them some morning lying upon the bottom of the box, quite shriveled /^ up and dead. In the case of spiders after r'/^ '-^ the act of cocooning, the process is ^\:^ After Co- cooning'. very much as above described, so far at least as I can judge from disjointed observations upon various species. Of course, those spiders which make several cocoons remained active until the last cocoon has been spun; but with those who make but one the forces of life seem to be entirely or largely expended in the act of maternity. After a little while the creature hangs to the maze of lines within which her cocoon is usually suspended, or to some bit of web ad- joining, and then simply drops off dead. As she lies in this attitude the legs are usually bent beneath the body and towards the mouth parts. Sometimes they will be found clus- tered close together just beneath the mouth or some part of the sternum. The abdomen frequently
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectspiders, bookyear1889
