340 RESEARCHES ON FUNGI 



of the University of Texas, told me that, when puffing takes place, 

 vast numbers of spores are liberated and the spores rise above the 

 hymenium to a height of several inches ; and he kindly sent me 

 some living fruit-bodies for study. Although these fruit-bodies, 

 packed in moss, were six days in coming from Austin, Texas, they 

 were still alive and able to discharge spores on arrival in Winnipeg. 

 I not only saw the puffing of some of these fruit-bodies but heard 

 it as well. The spores appeared to me to be shot straight outwards 

 from the hymenium to a distance of 2-3 cm., and I came to the 

 conclusion that their further ascent above a fruit-body was simply 

 due to their being carried upwards by air-currents. The puffing 

 took place, just as in Aleuria vesiculosa, immediately after a fruit- 

 body had been removed from a closed chamber where it had lain 

 undisturbed for some hours. On removing a fruit-body from its 

 chamber and putting it to my ear, I distinctly heard the blast as 

 numerous asci discharged themselves during 1-3 seconds. 



Rhizina inflata, as is well known, has large, convex, inflated, 

 chestnut-brown fruit-bodies which appear above the ground about 

 the roots of certain Coniferae (Fig. 174). On September 27, 1920, 

 at Rabbit Lake, Kenora, central Canada, I found some of these 

 fruit-bodies growing on the surface of a sandy deposit above the 

 roots of some Pines {Pinus Banksiana) which had been burnt and 

 thus killed a year or two previously. I took several of the fruit- 

 bodies to Winnipeg and, on September 28, put them in crystallising 

 dishes covered with glass plates. On September 29, after the fruit- 

 bodies had been kept in the dishes for about 24 hours, I took one 

 of them out and held it in a beam of sunUght about 12 inches in 

 front of my eyes. When thus brought into drier air, the fruit-body 

 puffed vigorously for a few seconds and it continued to give off a 

 few spores for more than a minute. So much I observed with my 

 eyes, but I heard nothing. I then took another fruit-body out of 

 one of the dishes and held it close to my ear. I distinctly heard it 

 puff. The sound was not so loud as that made by Pustular ia 

 catinus and Aleuria vesiculosa but it continued longer. It was 

 loudest during the first two or three seconds and then gradually 

 died away in the course of about a minute. It reminded me of 

 the effervescence of freshly poured champagne or mineral waters. 



