CHAPTER VIII 



THE HIGHER BASIDIOMYCETES * 

 (Bracket-fungi, Mushrooms and Puffb alls.} 



Although some of the first orders to be treated here possess very 

 close morphological relationships with those treated in the last 

 chapter, their saprophytic habit links them with the orders to fol- 

 low. This is especially true of the next order treated. 



Order 3. AURICULARIALES. 



Two families compose this order distinguished as follows : 

 Hymenium gymnocarpous (open), ear-shaped or tubercular. 



Auriculariaceae. 

 Hymenium angiocarpous (closed before maturity), more or less globular, 



stalked. Pilacraceae. 



The family AURICULARIACEAE with us contains Auricularia, 

 the Jew's ear, a gelatinous ear-like fungus growing singly or in 

 clustered masses on Sambucus, Fraxinus or Hicoria, representing 

 one or more species, and Mylittopsis an unusual tubercular form 

 that is little known and of uncertain relations. Species of Auri- 

 cularia allied to our own but larger, are used for food by the 

 Chinese. 



The family PILACRACEAE contains two genera of which Pi/acre 

 is represented with us by an inconspicuous capitate fungus grow- 

 ing on beech (Fagus) or Carpinns. 



LITERATURE. 



Saccardo. Sylloge Fungorum, 4: 579-581 ; 6: 760-771 ; n : 

 142-146. 



Lindau. Die naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien, i 1 **: 82-88. 1897. 



Tulasne. Nouvelles notes sur les Fungi Tremellini et leurs 

 allies. Ann Sc. Nat. V. 15: 215-235. 1872. 



Brefeld. Untersuchungen aus dem Gesammtgebiete der My- 

 kologie, 7 : 27-80. PI. 1-4. 1888. 



* For synopsis of orders treated in this chapter, see pp. 80, Si. 



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