Chapter XXVI.

1. The most laborious of all insects, if compared with the rest, are the tribes of ants and bees, with the hornets, wasps, and their other congeners. Some of the spiders are more neat, graceful, and skilful than others in their mode of life. Every one may see the diligence of the ant; for it is on the surface, and that they always travel in one direction, and make a store and treasure-house of food, for they work even in the night when there is a full moon.

2. There are many kinds of spiders and phalangia. Of the phalangia that bite there are two sorts. The one resembles those called wolves. It is small, variegated, sharp, and active in jumping. It is called psylla. The other is larger. Its colour is black, and its fore-legs are long. Its movements are slow, and it can scarcely walk. It is not strong, nor capable of jumping. The other kinds, which the dealers in medicine offer for sale, either do not bite at all, or very slightly.

3. There is another kind of those called wolves. One is small, and makes no web, and the larger sort makes a coarse inferior web upon the ground or in hedges. It always makes its web over chinks in the soil, and with the origin of the web in the interior it keeps guard until something falls into the web and moves it, when it comes out. The variegated kind makes a small inferior web among trees.

4. There is another third kind, which is very skilful and graceful. It commences the process of weaving by extending its web to the extremities on all sides, and then it draws a thread from the centre, and takes up the centre correctly. Upon these threads it weaves, as it were, the woof, and then weaves them altogether. Its sleeping place and store-room are situated at a distance. In seeking its prey it watches in the middle of its web. When anything falls into the web and the centre is moved, the spider surrounds and encloses it in a web, until it is rendered powerless, and then takes it up and carries it to her store. If hungry, she sucks it, for this is their method of enjoyment; and if not hungry, hastens back for the pursuit of more prey, and in the first place mends her broken web.

5. If anything in the meanwhile has fallen into the web, she first goes to the centre, and from that point, as before, falls upon her victim. If anyone destroys the web, she begins spinning again at the rising or setting of the sun, for it is at this time that her prey usually falls into the web. The female both makes the web and pursues the prey. The male only enjoys it with her.

6. There are two kinds of graceful spiders that spin a thick web, one large and one small. The one with long legs keeps watch suspended above its web, that the creatures which fall into the web may not be frightened when taken, and then it falls upon them from above, for its size prevents it from being easily concealed. But the smaller kind conceals itself in a small superior chamber of the web.

7. Spiders have the power of emitting their web as soon as they are born, not from within their bodies, as if it were an excrement, as Democritus says, but from the surface of their body, like the bark of a tree, or like the ejected spines of some animals, as the porcupine. They will attack and surround with their web animals larger than themselves; for they will attack small lizards, and beginning at the mouth, will emit the web until their mouth is covered, and then will approach and bite them. This is the nature of these animals.