RESEARCHES ON FUNGI 



autumn (Fig. 1). Its basidia are provided with two long slightly 

 divergent sterigmata which project into the air above the gelatinous 

 matrix in which the bodies of the hymenial cells are embedded. In 

 order to watch the discharge of the spores in this species, I proceeded 

 as follows. Some fresh fruit-bodies were gathered in a wood at 

 Winnipeg and were allowed to dry in the laboratory. A few days 

 afterwards some of them were revived by giving them access to 

 water without their being submerged. New sterigmata and spores 

 were quickly produced. A single small fruit-body was placed 

 horizontally on a glass slide and covered with a cover-glass. The 

 edge of the cover-glass which was raised above the glass slide by 

 the thickness of the fruit-body, i.e. by about 1 mm., was then sealed 



round with vaseline. Thus 

 the fruit-body came to He 

 in a small chamber contain- 

 ing moist air. On examina- 

 tion with the microscope, a 

 number of sterigmata and 

 spores could be seen pro- 

 jecting near the top of the 

 fruit-body in a horizontal 



direction. With a magnification of 440 diameters, I watched a spore 

 come into existence as a tiny rudiment on the end of a sterigma, grow 

 to full size, and be discharged (Fig. 2). The total length of time which 

 was thus occupied by one spore was only 1 hour and 20 minutes, and 

 by each of two other spores approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. 

 The stages in the development and discharge of the spores were 

 recorded by means of camera-lucida drawings made at intervals. For 

 the spore shown inFig. 2 the successive intervals were each 10 minutes. 

 In 40 minutes, the spore developed from a minute rudiment to full 

 size (B, C, D, E, F). Then there was a pause for 40 minutes. At 

 the end of that time a tiny drop of watery fluid began to exude at 

 the neck of the sterigma (G). The drop quickly grew in volume, 

 and in about 10 seconds from its first appearance attained its maxi- 

 mum size (H). Immediately thereafter the spore was shot violently 

 from its sterigma, and both spore and drop disappeared from view. 

 Subsequent observations, soon to be described, taught me that, 



FIG. 1. Fruit-bodies of Calocera cornea on 

 a piece of wood. Natural size. After 

 Brefeld (Untersuchungen, Heft VII, 

 Taf. 11, Fig. 14). 



