April, 1919, The Irish Naturalist. ^5 



SOME IRISH MYCETOZOA. 



BY W. F, GUNN. 



About two years since, a copy of Part 63 of the Clare 

 Island Survey, dealing with the Mycetozoa of the island 

 and of Ireland generally, came into my possession, and on 

 reading it, I learned for the first time of the great difference 

 between the number of species recorded from Ireland, as 

 compared with those known in England and Scotland. 

 I noticed also that some of the sub-provinces were almost 

 a complete blank, apparently having been little searched 

 for these organisms. I therefore concluded that I might 

 extend the list of species and their distribution by collecting 

 any which came under my notice, and the following list 

 is the result. 



Many of the Mycetozoa are very minute and require 

 not only careful looking for, but fairly keen eyesight to 

 detect. A good many of those noted below were found 

 while from home on business when the only time I could 

 give to them was a passing look over any decaying stump 

 or likely habitat which caught my attention while driving 

 through the country. In the majority of cases, those 

 which I have found are fairly easy to see, either by reason 

 of the Plasmodium or ripe sporangia being brightly coloured, 

 or by growing in a crowded mass. 



There seems to be no reason, so far as I know, why 

 the number of species which exist in Ireland should not 

 approximate to that recorded from Great Britain. Further 

 search is therefore likely to reveal the presence of species 

 at present unknown, and to extend the distribution of 

 those which have only a few (in some cases but one) stations 

 assigned to them. 



The determination of species sometimes presents 

 difficulties owing to the presence of intermediate forms, and 

 careful examination and some degree of skill in microscopic 

 manipulation is necessary. It is therefore a great pleasure 

 to me to acknowledge the ready help which those experts 

 to whom I have applied have shown me. The courtesy of 

 their replies, often entailing troublesome examination of 



