LYCOPERDALES 



31S 



pyriforme, and L. ivrightii. All are quite similar in differentia- 

 tion. The fruit-body initial arises on rhizomorphs. It is at first 

 homogeneous throughout. The peridium is early distinguished 

 as loose, radially oriented hvphae which become pseudoparen- 

 chvmatous. The hvphae of the central region are at first all 

 thin-walled and intricately intertwined. As the fruit body in- 



FiG. 146. Cluster of fructifications of Lycoperdofi gemmatimi. 



creases in size, cavities bounded by parallel hvphae appear. The 

 cavities arise by mechanical splitting. As the cavities become 

 larger, the termini of these hvphae become clavate, forming a 

 paHsade that surrounds each cavity. These clavate tips eventually 

 become the basidia. The capillitial threads arise from thick- 

 ^^•alled, intercavity hvphae which resist disintegration. 



In Lvcoperdon there is a sterile base that may project as a 

 columella into the glebal area. The outer peridial layer in many 

 of the species is spiny or verrucose and may early become 

 weathered away. An apical pore through which the spores 

 escape develops in the endoperidium. The sterile base of Calvatia 

 is broad, and the peridium, composed of a single layer, breaks off 

 in large pieces. Bovista lacks a sterile base, but the endoperidium 



