252 Wurre: THe NinuLARIACEAE OF NortH AMERICA 
sisting through the winter months. They grow on manure, sticks, 
shavings, dried herbaceous plants, and Cructbulum crucibuliforme is 
frequently found on old pieces of sacking. On a certain old 
board walk at Lakewood, N. J., this last species was found by the 
hundred growing in regular series between the joints of the boards. 
A further study of the plants will probably show that they are far 
more common and widely distributed than is at present thought, 
for they are likely to escape detection owing to their small size 
and inconspicuous coloring,. 
The order Nidulariales comprises but one family, the Nidula- 
riaceae. Until quite recently this family was considered by De 
Toni * and others to include the genera Cyathus, Crucibulum, 
Nidularia, Thelebolus, Dacryobolus, Sphaerobolus, Polyangium and 
Atractobolus, the last two included as doubtful genera. Fries f in- 
cluded besides the three first mentioned genera, Arachnion Schwein. 
Myriococcum Fries, and Polyangium Link. The two latter genera 
are certainly out of place here, Myriococcum belonging under the 
Perisporiales,t and Polyangium is not mentioned by either Sac- 
cardo or Fischer. In Fischer's revision of the family in 1899 
he places Avachnion Schwein.§ under “ Doubtful Genera” in the 
Sclerodermataceae; for Sphaerobolus Tode he establishes a sepe 
rate family ; Zhelebolus is placed under the Ascobolaceae, and 
Dacryobolus and Atractobolus are included in the same family but 
as doubtful genera. 
This leaves only the three genera, Cyathus (for which there is a 
earlier form of the name, Cyathia) Crucibulum, and Nidularia, in this 
family. Concerning the last genus a question already raised by Otto 
Kuntze presents itself in regard to the correct name, since Roth’s 
Granularia || antedates Fries and Nordholm’s Nidularia by ovet 
a quarter of a century. Roth’s description and figure of Granu- 
laria pisiformis place this genus ona certain footing, and there ca? 
be no hesitation in answering the above question. Recently some 
Scere 
* Saccardo, Syll. Fung. 7: 28. 1887. 
¢ Syst. Myc. 2: 296. 1822. 
tSaccardo, Syll. Fung. r: 29. 1882. 
4 Engler & Prantl, Nat. Pflanzenzenfam, 11** ; 339. 1899. 
| Ust. Ann. Bot. r: 6. fl. 7. fiz. 1791. 
q Syn. Gast. 2. 1817-18. 
