120 THE FLORA OF NEBRASKA. 



The Coleochaetcae are related to the Oedogoniacear on the one hand and to the Flnn'- 

 deae on the other. It Is possible also that the origin of the great groups of the higher 

 fungi is to be found in some such group as this. The nature and signiticauoe of the proc- 

 ess of the formation of the sporocarp of the higher fungi has been a fruitful cause of 

 discussion, and it has been commonly thought of late that it had no relation to the car- 

 pospore of the Coleochaeteae, or to the oospore of the Phycophytes,but was rather homol- 

 ogous to the asexual spore-formation of the lower fungi. But the Lahoulbeniaceae, 

 which according to recent investigation exhibit asexual reproduction of the same type 

 as the Coleochaetcae and Florideae, indicate that this view is erroneous and that the 

 origin of the higher fungi is to be sought in about the same place as that of the last 

 named groups. 



There is but one order and family: 



Older 7.-C0I.E<K;II.4ETACEAE. 



Family.— COLEOCHAETACEAE. 



The characters of the class. There is but one genus. A second one— Chnetopeltin- 

 is thought by some to belong here also. It is distinguished from Colcocha.ete by the 

 production of 2-4-8 swarm-spores in each spore mother-cell instead of a single one as in 

 Coleochaete. 



1. COIiEOCII.^ETE Breb. .\nn. So. Nat. Bot. 3, I., 29. 1814. 

 The characters of the family. 

 Etymology: Greeli KoXeog, sheath, and x"''l, hair. 



Coloofliaete irregnlaris Pringsh. Jahrb II., 1-.38, taf 1-G. 18G0. 



Irregularly branched, cells 4 to 5-angled, 10-20 /j broad, usually 8-10 /j long 

 or sometimes twice as long as wide; carpogouos 40-GO /i in diam. 



Grows in more or less e.xtended irregular sheets closely adhering to the sub- 

 stratum. The cortication around the oarpospore is sometimes only par- 

 tially developed. 



On Lemiia and Chara spp. from Cherry county, and on Nitella from Minden. 

 PI. XXIII., Fig. 3, xlOO. 



Coleot'Iiaete sontata Breb. 1. c. t. II. 



Thallus flat, bright green, .5-2mm. in diam., made up of dichotomously 

 branched filaments united in a more or less lobed orbicular disc; cells 

 thicls-walled, 4-5-angled or rounded, 13-17 /i wide, 10-40 // long; carpospore 

 subglobose, 85-100 /i in diam. 



Extremely variable as to size and shape. 



On Chara from Cherry county. Plate XXIII., Pig. 1. xlOO. 



Coleochaete orbicalaris Pringsh. 1. c. 



Thallus like that of C. Hcutata. but regularly orbicular, not lobed, ..'3-2 mm. 



in diam., colls usually isodiametric, 10-17 /<; fruit as in C. sciitatn, but not 



so often found as iu that species. 

 On Lemna and Chara, Cherry county, and on Chara, Minden. PI. XXIII. 



Fig. 2. xlOO. 

 This species is probably only a variety of C. scutala. 



