Chapter VII 

 THE USE OF THE MANUAL 



Since the purpose of this manual is to facilitate the identification of 

 Aspergilli as they are isolated from nature and as they are encountered in 

 the investigation of special problems, the procedures and considerations 

 involved in the use of the manual must be discussed. The general mor- 

 phology and structural details found in the spore-producing apparatus of 

 the Aspergilli have been described and figured in Chapter III. Com- 

 plexities in the specific combinations of these characters found in the exam- 

 ination of moldy material and in the isolated colonies of individual strains 

 makes desirable a summary outline of the exact observations to be made 

 in describing an Aspergillus. Such a descriptive sheet is presented as page 

 82. For practical use, a standard sheet of record paper is folded over on 

 the left-hand margin for about 5 cm. The column of observations desired 

 is written upon this marginal fold ; a fresh sheet of paper is slipped under the 

 fold and the descriptive data are filled in, appearing exactly in the same 

 order for each strain studied. A single glance at the sheet shows the dis- 

 crepancies, if any, in the descriptive data obtained. With such a sheet 

 properly filled out, the keys to groups and within groups facilitate the 

 placement of the strain in its proper group first, then its allocation to species 

 within the group. 



Such descriptive sheets, to have comparative value in species diagnoses 

 must present their data in standardized terms. It has, therefore, been 

 necessary to define and illustrate the morphological terms accepted in this 

 manual, and to indicate as synonyms in the chapters on morphology the 

 usages of various describers of Aspergilli back over the 200 years since 

 Micheli. 



Identification from specimens : The field mycologist working with speci- 

 mens collected and examined fresh or dried will often find completion of a 

 technical description very difficult and some observations impossible. One 

 with long acquaintance with the Aspergilli may place his specimen to the 

 group or aggregate species correctly, but even such workers are frequently 

 puzzled. If the organism is deemed important, the fresh or recently col- 

 lected specimen should be taken to the culture laboratory to insure its 

 isolation and preservation in pure form. The descriptive data at hand 

 should then be checked and supplemented from the pure culture. 



To identify an unknown Aspergillus, the worker needs pertinent data 

 which will permit him to interpret his mold in terms of species already de- 



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