76 MY FAMILY AND OTHER ANIMALS wrinkles at the corners, surveyed the world. He strode along energetically, humming to himself. When we came to a ditch full of stagnant water he stopped for a moment and stared down into it, his beard bristling. ‘Um,’ he said conversationally, ‘daphnia magna.’ He rasped at his beard with his thumb, and then set off down the pathagain. ‘Unfortunately,’ he said to me, ‘I was coming out to see some people... er... . friends of mine, and so I did not bring my collecting bag with me. It is a pity, for that ditch might have contained something.’ When we branched off the fairly smooth path we had been travelling along and started up the stony goat-track, I expected some sort of protest, but Theodore strode behind me with unabated vigour, still humming. At length we came to the gloomy olive-grove, and I led Theodore to the bank and pointed out the mysterious trapdoor. He peered down at it, his eyes narrowed. ‘Ah ha,’ he said, ‘yes...um... yes.’ He produced from his waistcoat pocket a tiny penknife, opened it, inserted the point of the blade delicately under the little door and flipped it back. ‘Um, yes,” he repeated; ‘creniza.” He peered down the tunnel, blew down it, and then let the trapdoor fall into place again. “Yes, they are the burrows of the trapdoor spiders,’ he said, ‘but this one does not appear to be inhabited. Generally, the creature will hold on to the... er... ¢rapdoor... with her legs, or rather, her c/aws, and she holds on with such tenacity that you have to be careful or you will damage the door, trying to force it open. Um... yes... these are the burrows of the females, of course. The male makes a similar burrow, but itis only about half the size.’ I remarked that it was the most curious structure I had seen. “Ah ha! yes,’ said Theodore, ‘they are certainly very curious. A thing that always puzzles me is how the female knows when the male is approaching.’