89. Ephebe ] 25. EPHEBACEAE ■ 143 



or less irregular, entangled branches, devoid of differentiation into layers; 

 apothecia small, terminal, the disk flat to convex, the exciple thin, colored like the 

 disk, soon disappearing; hypothecium brown to blackish brown; hymenium hyaline 

 or brownish above; paraphyses thick, unbranched, jointed, enlarged and brownish 

 toward the apices; asci oblong-clavate; spores 8, hyaline, oblong-ellipsoid to 

 ellipsoid, non-septate or rarely 1 -septate. 

 The algal host is Stigonema. 



1. Spilonema paradoxum Born., Mem. Soc. Sci. Nat. Cherb. 4:226. pi. 1, 2. 1856. 



Thallus minute to small, suberect, irregularly branched, blackish brown to 

 black, the branches short, cylindrical, entangled, often much wrinkled; apothecia 

 small, 0.4-0.5 mm. across, terminal, the disk convex, black; hypothecium blackish 

 brown; spores oblong-ellipsoid, non-septate, 8-9.5 X 3.5-4 fx. 



On rocks, Massachusetts. 



89. Ephebe E. Fries, Syst. Orb. Veg. 1:256. 1825. 



Thallus of few to many, thin-walled, many-celled, hyaline hyphae, extending 

 longitudinally and less often laterally immediately within the sheath of the host, 

 or sometimes in older conditions forming also in part a central axis of longitudinally 

 extending hyphae, sometimes protruding through the hostal sheath, usually at 

 raised places, in dense clusters, hyphae of older portions of the thallus sometimes 

 becoming densely intertwined and forming a true plectenchyma toward the base 

 of the hostal filaments; apothecia and spermagonia sometimes arising from the 

 enlargements, apothecia minute, immersed in the host, often several in a group, 

 and becoming semisuperficial and globose-discoid; hypothecium hyaline; paraph- 

 yses present or absent; asci short-clavate to cylindrico-clavate; spores 8, hya- 

 line, non-septate or finally and obscurely 1-septate. 



The algal host is Stigonema, plainly not the same species for all species of 

 Ephebe. The detection of the mainly endoparasitic lichen requires careful micro- 

 scopic study, and fruits are seldom seen. 



A. Algal host rather small, uniformly and stoutly branched 1. E. solida 



A. Algal host longer, loosely and dichotomously branched 2. E. lanata 



1. Ephebe solida Born., Ann. Acad. Sci. Nat. III. 18:171. 1852. 

 E. Lesquereauxii Born. 



Thallus that of the genus; apothecia minute, 0.09-0.2 mm. across, immersed 

 laterally or terminally in the host; paraphyses distinct to coherent-indistinct, their 

 apices somewhat thickened; asci cylindrico-clavate; spores oblong, often slightly 

 curved, non-septate, 10-16 X 4-5 /x. 



Occurs from New England to Georgia and Alabama, growing within black 

 clusters of a smallish, rather uniformly and stoutly branched Stigonema, usually 

 on exposed but frequently wet rocks. The form called E. Lesquereauxii grows on 

 a much larger, less loosely branched Stigonema, and its fruit is unknown. 



2. Ephebe lanata (L.) Vainio, Med. Soc. Faun. Flor. Fenn. 14:20. 1888. 

 Lichen lanatus L., Sp. PI. 1155. 1753 pro parte. E. pubescens (Ach.) E. Fries. 

 Thallus that of the genus; apothecia minute, 0.1-0.25 mm. across, immersed 



several together, usually in swellings of the host, the disk punctiform; paraphyses 

 absent; asci clavate; spores oblong, becoming 1-septate, 11-16X3-4/*. (Plates 

 5 and 6 a.) 



Distributed throughout northern United States, mostly in mountainous regions. 

 Also reported from Alabama. Growing within a rather long, loosely, dichotomously 

 much-branched, brownish black Stigonema, which occurs in rather large clusters 

 in moist, shady places. 



OTHER SPECIES REPORTED 

 Ephebe mammillosum (Lyngb.) E. Fries — Massachusetts. 



