STROPHARIA SEMIGLOBATA 329 



few minutes into solid masses. As soon as such frozen dung-ball- 

 are brought into the laboratory and thawed, the spores within them 

 rapidly germinate and produce an extensive mycelium which, at the 

 end of a few weeks, gives rise to fruit-bodies. 



The mycelium retains its vitality in the dried condition for at 

 least five months and probably much longer. I gathered some 

 dung-balls in a field in England in August, 1911, allowed them to 

 dry, and took them in the dried state to Winnipeg, where they were 

 again moistened in January, 1912. A few days after the re-moisten- 

 ing, I observed that several fruit-bodies of Stropharia semiglobata 

 had begun to come up on the dung. These grew rapidly in size 

 and, at length, after elongating their stipes and expanding their 

 pilei, began to liberate a cloud of spores. Thus convincing evidence 

 was afforded that the mycelium of the fungus, after five months 

 of quiescence in the dry dung-balls, had been able to resume its 

 development in a normal manner. 



The fruit-bodies of Stropharia semiglobata occur singly or in little 

 groups, and occasionally two or three are joined at the base. In the 

 wild state they are from 5 to 14 cm. in height, the cap 1 to 3 cm. 

 broad, and the stipes, except for the somewhat swollen base, 2 to 

 4 mm. in thickness. Fig. 114 shows a fruit-body of large size grown 

 in the laboratory, and Fig. 115 another fruit-body of about the 

 maximum size which was gathered growing in a field in England. 

 The outer surface of both the pileus and stipe are whitish yellow and 

 very glutinous when moist. The fungus is regarded as poisonous. 



The pileus is rounded at first but soon becomes semi-globate, 

 from which shape it has received its specific name. It is smooth, 

 with white flesh fairly thick at the centre and thinner toward the 

 margin, even, viscous or very viscid when moist, but like smooth 

 leather when dry. The viscid pellicle which is more or less trans- 

 parent can be torn off the white flesh. It consists of hyphae the 

 outer walls of which are gelatinous and confluent. The gills 

 (Fig. 115, B) are adnate and squarely set against the stipe, often 

 with a tiny decurrent tooth, broad, smooth, thin, and mottled 

 purplish- brown. The spores in the mass are brownish-purple. The 

 stipe is viscid in moist weather. Springtails which try to ascend 

 it, as well as bits of grass-stems, etc., sometimes become stuck in 



