Physarum 63 



slender and flexuose, 0.3 to 1 mm. long, enclosing refuse matter 

 at the base. Capillitium with short, hyaline threads connecting 

 numerous, angular lime-knots, which often unite to form a pseudo- 

 columella, sometimes almost Badhamia-like. Spores brownish 

 purple, either faintly or strongly spinulose, often faceted with 

 patches of spinules or warts, 9-15 /x diam. 



Type locality: Ceylon. 



Habitat: On dead wood and bark. 



Distribution: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, *Pennsylvania, Puerto 

 Rico. 



Illustration: Lister, Mycetozoa ed. 3. pi. 41. 



This species is somewhat related to P. compressum. An exam- 

 ination of the type specimen of Badhamia cinerascens in the 

 United States National Herbarium indicates that this is a poorly 

 developed form of the present species. 



40. Physarum cinereum (Batsch) Pers. Neues Mag. Bot. 1 : 89. 

 1794. 



Lycoperdon cinereum Batsch, Elench. Fung. 155. 17S3. 



Didymium oxalinum Peck, Kept. N. Y. State Mus, 28: 54. 1876. (N. Y. 



B. G. no. 7976, type material.) 

 Physarum sessile Brandza, Bull. Soc. Myc. Fr. 44: 260. 1928. (N. Y. B. G. 



nos. 10002, 10036, authentic material.) 



Plasmodium water\' white or yellow (Lister). Sporangia ses- 

 sile, subglobose, or pulvinate, heaped, crowded, or scattered, 

 often forming simple or branched plasmodiocarps, 0.3 to 0.5 mm. 

 broad, cinereous, more or less warted or veined with white; spo- 

 rangial wall membranous, with included clusters of white lime- 

 granules, often limeless and iridescent. Capillitium of branching 

 hyaline threads, with numerous, rounded or angular, white lime- 

 knots, varying in size, sometimes consisting of a Badhamia-like 

 network with few hyaline threads. Spores brownish lilac, almost 

 smooth or spinulose, 7-10 n diam. 



Type locality: Europe. 



Habitat: On dead leaves and ground debris. 



Distribution: Common everywhere in North America. 



Illustration: Lister, Mycetozoa ed. 3. pi. 47. 



The species is extremely variable in all characters. The size 

 of the spores as given is approximate for most of the collections, 

 but may be larger, and the color varies in different gatherings. 

 The lime in the capillitium may be dense and massed in the cen- 



