. 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 . s,at the same time again spreading her legs wide apart. Another observation, which directs our attention. to theinstincts of this spider, was made one late afternoon. I sawanother spider of this species on the blosssoms of one of theprimrose plants. The following early morning she had changedover to another flower on the same plant, having been drivenout by the collapsing petals, as previously described. Thefol
. 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 . s,at the same time again spreading her legs wide apart. Another observation, which directs our attention. to theinstincts of this spider, was made one late afternoon. I sawanother spider of this species on the blosssoms of one of theprimrose plants. The following early morning she had changedover to another flower on the same plant, having been drivenout by the collapsing petals, as previously described. Thefollowing evening the spider was in the newly opened flower,but on the third morning she had left, leaving a dead bee asthe remnant of her repast. But why did she leave ? What unerring instinct wasexercised in telling her that the succession of flowers was atan end? For it afterwards developed that the flowers hadceased blossoming. In a certain light, I caught sight of anumber of her spun threads connecting the tops of the differentflowers. Here lay tell-tale evidence, for the spider had thehabit of spinning out and leaving a web behind her. These ANIMAL BEHAVIOR, WITH EXAMPLES 185. The Evening Primrose, shovnng the pretty fink and yellow moth, Rhodophora Jlorida, which frequents the flowers in daytime for protection. 186 NATURE SKETCHES IN TEMPERATE AMERICA threads marked perfectly the course of her movements in myabsence. A httle study of the various strands revealed the fact thatshe had examined critically the tops of the buds and had dis-covered in some way the failing nutrition of the flowers. Shehad shown evidence of deliberation and had gone to and froin her travels over the bud tops, as was indicated Ijy the variousthreads. I have witnessed this spider chantfe color occasionally fromwhite to yellow, during one of its moults. Packard has inti-mated that this change of color is for the purpose of moreperfectly adapting the s])ider to the flowers of the goldenrod,and other ye
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