292 RESEARCHES ON FUNGI 



sterilised tap-water and another in a hanging drop of dung-agar. 

 In the course of a few days, both glebal masses germinated and, 

 notwithstanding the competition of a Mucor and of bacteria, both 

 of them sent out radially a septate mycelium which bore numerous 

 clamp-connexions and exactly resembled that sent out by glebal 

 masses in cultures made in a similar manner but in which the 

 culture medium was free from other organisms. Thus it was 

 proved that the glebal masses had retained their vitality in the dry 

 condition for upwards of five years. 



Another glebal mass which in my laboratory had fallen on to a 

 sheet of tissue paper in November, 1920, and had been kept dry in 

 a test-tube was placed in sterilised tap-water in February, 1929, 

 i.e. after it had been kept dry for eight years and three months. 

 For some days it showed not a sign of life, but eventually it sent 

 out radially a typical mycelium made up of branched and septate 

 hyphae bearing clamp-connexions. 



The evidence which is available so far, therefore, indicates that 

 the gemmae in dried glebal masses of Sphaerobolus stellatus may 

 retain their vitality for at least eight to eleven years. This long 

 retention of vitality by dried gemmae may well be due in part to 

 the fact that the gemmae are embedded in a thick glutinous matrix 

 inside the glebal mass and are therefore not exposed to the air. 



The luxuriant development of the mycelium which grows out 

 from a glebal mass placed in water is probably accomplished in part 

 at the expense of the fatty matrix by which the spores and germin- 

 ating gemmae are surrounded, and it may well be that the mycelium 

 makes the fat available by excreting into it the enzyme lipase. 



Because in a glebal mass placed in water the spores after a few 

 days become disintegrated, it must not be concluded that the spores 

 are valueless in propagating Sphaerobolus species. Under natural 

 conditions in the open, it must often happen that the glebal masses 

 of Sphaerobolus are swallowed by herbivorous animals, and then 

 the fatty matrix and the spores which it envelopes are subjected to 

 conditions differing greatly from those provided by a simple watery 

 medium. As we shall see later, Sphaerobolus often occurs on the 

 dung of cows, rabbits, etc., and it seems very probable that the 

 fungus under such conditions has originated from spores which have 



