370 FETCH : 



Perichaena variabilis, Rost. 



Licea reticulata, B. & Br., Fungi of Ceylon, No. 781. Ophio- 

 theca reticulata, Mass., Mon., p. 133. 



Berkeley and Broome's tj'pe specimen of Licea reticulata, in 

 Herb. Peradeniya consists of netted wide-meshed plasmodio- 

 carps, up to 12 X 5 mm., and small ring-shaped plasmodio- 

 carps, 0"4 to 1 mm. diameter. The latter are immature. The 

 capillitium is scanty. This is not a common species. An 

 extensive gathering from Peradeniya consists almost entirely 

 of a form with white much-netted plasmodiocarjis, some 

 of them 5 cm. long ; the sporangium wall consists of 

 two layers, the outer thin and smooth, the inner papillose on 

 the inner side, and between these two lie abundant cubic, 

 lozenge-shaped, or acicular lime crystals. These specimens 

 bring P. variabilis into line with P. populina and P. depressa, 

 both of which may have white incrustations in the sporangium 

 wall. 



Peradeniya, Kegalla. 



Perichaena pulcherrima, Petch. Ann. Perad., Vol. 4, p. 305. 



This species has only been found on one occasion. It 

 occurred on cacao branches which had been killed by Diplodia 

 cacaoicola, at a height of about 4 feet from the ground, and 

 in a similar position on dead Erythritm lithosperma. The 

 branches were brought to Peradeniya and placed under a 

 bush, where they developed a further lot of sporangia in ten 

 to twelve days. As the dry season had now set in, they were 

 transferred to tall glass cylinders in the laboratoiy, and 

 further specimens were obtained from them in five days. The 

 sporangia are purple-red, or purple-brown, glossy, either 

 sessile or stalked. The sessile forms are globose , about "3 mm. 

 diameter, or elongated, up to 0'7 mm. long, and 0*3 mm 

 broad, crowded on a netted shining, irregular hypothallus. 

 The stalked forms are scattered, and have globose heads up to 

 0"4 mm. diameter ; the stalks are about 0'3 mm. high, O'l mm. 

 diameter, furrowed, brown or red-brown, containing granular 

 matter, often connate in twos or threes. The sporangium 

 wall is double, consisting of a stout, outer, granular, purple- 

 red layer and a delicate hyaline inner layer. In some examples 



