CRIBRARIA 207 



o. Small, under 0.5 mm. in diameter; stipe 2-6 mm 14. C. tenella 



o. Larger, 0.5 mm. or over; stipe 1-2 mm p 



p. Yellow-brown; margin of calyculus dentate; on wood.. . 15. C. aurantiaca 

 p. Nut brown; calyculus prominently ribbed; on leaves. . . 16. C. laxa 



q. Deep yellow, orange or red r 



q. Purple, lavender or blue t 



r. Reddish tawny; minute, 0.15-0.2 mm. in diameter 17. C. exigua 



r. Deep yellow or orange; diameter 0.6-0.7 mm 18. C. rufa 



r. Red; over 1 mm. in diameter 5 



s. Ruby red; nodes expanded, not granular 19. C. rubiginosa 



s. Brick-red; nodes scarcely expanded, granular 20. C. ferruginea 



t. Nodes expanded u 



t. Nodes thickened v 



u. Net purple; nodular granules reddish purple 21. C. purpurea 



u. Net dark blue; nodular granules black 22. C. lepida 



v. Deep lilac or reddish purple, 0.4-0.5 mm. in diameter; 



spores 5-6 y. 23. C. elegans 



v. Violet, 0.2-0.3 mm. in diameter; spores 7-8 n 24. C. violacea 



1. Cribraria argillacea Pers. 



Roemer N. Mag. Bot. 1 : 91. 1794. 

 PI. XIII, Figs. 330, 331. 



1791. Stemonitis argillacea Pers., in Gmel., Syst. Nat. 2 : 1469. 

 1797. Cribraria micropus Schrad., Nov. Gen. PI. 3, pi. 2, figs. 1, 2. 

 1808. Trichia argillacea (Pers.) Poiret, in Lam. Encycl. 8 : 55. 



Sporangia dull ochraceous-olivaceous, globose, nearly 1 mm. in 

 diameter, sessile or short-stipitate, closely gregarious or crowded, the 

 peridial walls at maturity smooth, shining, except above, long-per- 

 sistent, obscurely reticulate, with irregular thickenings which at the 

 apex at length present the appearance of an irregular, coarsely meshed 

 net without nodal thickenings; hypothallus silvery, evanescent; stipe, 

 when present, very short, stout, erect, reddish brown; spore-mass 

 ochraceous; spores by transmitted light pale yellow, spinulose, 5-7 /x. 

 Plasmodium lead colored, scanty. 



In habit and form of sporangia suggesting Tubifera, but possessing 

 the reticulations and plasmodic granules of Cribraria. In freshly 

 formed sporangia the reticulations are barely visible in the crown; 

 later on they are more manifest, until, as spore dispersal proceeds, the 

 cribraria characters come out with sufficient distinctness, and in 

 empty sporangia the reticulations may be seen to affect the entire 

 peridial wall. The nodes are not expanded. 



Not uncommon. New England, Ontario and Washington to South 

 Carolina, Iowa and Oregon. Widely distributed in temperate regions, 

 mainly on rotten coniferous wood; also reported from South Africa. 



