30 FUNGUS-FLORA. 



brown hyphae, sessile, 3-4 mm. long by 1 mm. broad, black, 

 oblong or elliptic-oblong, ends obtuse, slightly depressed, 

 lips very obtuse, dehiscing by a narrow, longitudinal slit; 

 asci clavate, thick-walled, 8-spored; spores biseriate, elon- 

 gated elliptical, ends obtuse, usually more or less evidently 

 constricted at the middle, 9-11-septate, then muriform, 

 brown, almost opaque when quite mature, smooth, 38-45 x 

 12-16 ju. ; paraphyses filiform, branched, thickened, and 

 coloured above. 



Hysterium elongatum, Wahlenberg, Flor. Lap., p. 528 ; Cke., 

 Hdbk., p, 759. 



On various kinds of decorticated wood, as willow, poplar, 

 oak, buckthorn, &c. 



Specimen in Fries' Scler. Suec, n. 62, examined. 



Ascophore usually straight, rarely slightly bent, often very 

 indistinctly longitudinally striate. Hyphae of the subiculum 

 4 /jl thick, dark brown, septate, branched. 



B. — Spores hyaline. 

 ACTIDIUM. Fries, (figs. 17-20, p. 22.) 



Ascophore sessile, stellate with from 3-5 rays ; dehiscence 

 by means of a long slit along each ray and meeting at the 

 centre; black, somewhat carbonaceous; asci cylindric-cla- 

 vate ; spores 8, biseriate, hyaline, 1 -septate ; (paraphyses 

 always absent ?) 



Actidium, Fries, Obs. Myc., i. p. 190; Cke., Hdbk., p. 766; 

 Sacc, Syll., ii. p. 738. 



Distinguished by the linear, hyaline, 1-septate spores, and 

 the ascophore branched in a radiate or stellate manner with 

 3-5 subequal rays. Branched ascophores occur in species 

 belonging to other genera, but the branching is scanty and 

 the arms of unequal length, the spores are also different. 

 The ascophores of the present species resemble a star-fish in 

 miniature. 



Actidium hysterioides. Fries, Syst. Myc, ii. p. 96 ; 

 Cke., Hdbk., p. 766, fig. 363; Sacc, Syll., ii. n. 5614. (figs. 

 17-20, p. 22.) 



Ascophore radiato-stellate, 3-5 rayed, black, dehiscing by 



