60 FETCH : 



Protnihera. 

 Protubera maracuja Moller. Hakgala (5,600 feet), September, 

 1908 ; May, 1910. Nuwara Eliya (6,200 feet), September, 

 1908, abundant. Not yet found at lower elevations. 



NlDULARIACE^. 



Nidularia. 



Nidularia reticulata n. sp. In Fungi of Ceylon, No. 729. 

 Berkeley and Broome recorded for Ceylon, Nidularia 

 Durixana TuL, from Thwaites 1022, which, according to 

 the herbarium specimen, was collected at Peradeniya. 

 Part of the Peradeniya herbarium specimen was submitted 

 in 1906 to Lloyd, who states that it is certainly not Nidu- 

 laria Duriseana, but an unnamed species, differing from all 

 others in the spiny branching fibrils of the peridiole walls 

 (Letter 19). It is described here as Nidularia reticulata. 



The peridia are now pale browia, pulvinate, up to 4 mm. 

 diameter, with a membranous wall. The peridiola are 

 discoid, circular, flat, pale brown, up to 0-75 mm. diameter. 

 By transmitted light they show a central cu'cular brown 

 opaque area, 0-4 mm. diameter, surrounded by a broad 

 semi-transparent outer zone. The actual peridiole is only 

 about 0-4 mm. diameter, while its outer coat is 0'75 mm. 

 diameter. The peridiole is easily shelled out from its outer 

 coat. This outer coat consists of a thin weft of spinous 

 yellow hyphse, those of the ground layer being slender, 

 while over or among them are stout, thick-walled spinous 

 hyphse, up to 12 [x diameter, which form a network, par- 

 ticularly towards the rim, where they unite into a strong, 

 rigid, marginal ring. 



Berkeley and Broome gave the dimensions of the spores 

 as 7 • 5 X 5 [;,. The Peradeniya herbarium specimens appear 

 to be immature. 



The peridioles of this species, as noted by Lloyd, have 

 soilie resemblance to those of Nidula emodensis. They differ 

 in having a membranous peripheral zone (which, however, 

 may not occur in mature examples), and in the more 

 regular netted arrangement of the coarse hyphse. 



