r'iil)-slia))i'il l'iiff-H;ill, Lycopordon cyiitliiforme 

 nitlifi less than half usual sl/e. 



Its larjje size, Avhitc color and smootlu^^h siirfaf-e are characters 

 by which it may easily lie distinguislioil tinm every otlier species. 



Till' ( 'up-shapotl putl'-hall, Lycoperdou njdfhiformc, is iniKth 

 smaller and much more frequent. It is commonly three to live 

 inches in diameter. It is most often ahniptly cotitractcil liclow 

 into a thick basal [)art, wliicli 

 gives it a somewhat turbinate 

 sbape, but this is not always 

 the case. Its color is some- 

 what vavial)le, rano-inp: from 

 grayish-white to brown ni 

 pinkish-brown. Its surface i-' 

 smooth, or nearly so, but ii 

 usually cracks in an areulate 

 manner, so that the upi)ev 

 half especially presents a sys- 

 tem of reticulating chinks en- 

 closing small, more or less an- 

 gular, darker areas or patches. 

 "When mature, the dusty 

 spore mass of the interior pre- 

 sents a purple-brown color. 

 After the upper part of the rind has fallen away, and the spores 

 have been dispersed, there remains the basal part of the plant, 

 which is surmounted by the concave or cup-shaped lower portion 

 of the rind. This condition of the plant was the basis for the 

 original description of the species and suggested the name of this 

 puH'-ball. 



Its place of growth is in helds and pastures, and its range ex- 

 tends westward to the ^lissis- 

 sippi liiver, and south to 

 South Carijlina. It appenrn 

 in August and September. 

 gi'owing singly or in grroups 

 of several individuals. Some- 

 times the old flattened cup- 

 shape base persists till the 

 folloAAnng spring. It differ- 

 from the Giant putf-ball in 

 its smaller size, chinky areo- 

 late surface, darker color, and 

 when mature, in its purple- 

 brown interior. Both species are equally good to eat, and both 



Lycoperdou i yalliifornu — liiii-Sliaped Uase 

 of an olil plant, about half usual size. 



13 



