10 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL.98 



GELIDIACEAE 

 Gelidium pusillum var. conchicola Piccone & Grunow 



From bottom sample at anchorage, Old Providence Island, Colom- 

 bia (Sell mitt 31), August 6, 1938. 



CORALLINACEAE 

 MELOBESIEAE 

 Fosliella farinosa (Lamouroux) Howe 



In shallow water, Old Providence Island, Colombia, epiphytic on 

 Cymodocca manatorum (Schmitt 44 p. p.), probably on reefs; epi- 

 phytic on Valonia ventricosa (Schmitt 32) ; and on Laurencia obtusa 

 (Schmitt 51), August 6, 1938. 



Fosliella farinosa (Lamouroux) Howe, n. var. chalicodictya 3 



Text figs. 13, 14, plate 1, figs. 1-3. 



Plants small, forming minute coalescent lightly calcified crusts 

 which individually may reach 1, rarely 2 mm. in diameter; crusts fila- 

 mentous, the filaments sinuous to angularly bent, laterally cohering 

 at the points of contact, or anastomosing, to form a definite network, 

 the cells generally 10-12 jx diameter, 15-20 fx long, with small super- 

 ficial cortical cells superposed at the ends ; occasional hyaline hair- 

 bearing cells 18-22 jx diameter also present. 



In shallow water, Old Providence Island, Colombia ; probably on 

 reefs as epiphytic on Valonia ventricosa (Schmitt 32), August 6, 

 1938. 



This plant was mixed with F. farinosa var. solmsiana and other, 

 unidentifiable Melobesieae, but usually monopolized the cell upon 

 which it grew. The variety solmsiana characteristically forms small 

 fanlike patches a few to several filaments wide (pi. 1, fig. ic), the 

 patches linked by some filaments which far outstrip the rest and 

 spread out to form new fans at their ends. The plant here specially 

 described forms close crusts which often coalesce (pi. 1, fig. 1). It 

 is quite impossible to separate from the host for mounting those with 

 the largest meshes, but these meshes are frequently quite regular 

 and 40-60 /x or more in diameter. Those crusts which have smaller 





3 Fosliella farinosa, var. nov. chalicodictya — Plantae pusillae, 1-2 mm. diam., 

 inter se coalescentes, modice calce incrustatae, filamentosae ; filamentis flexuosis 

 reticulum fere regulare formantibus ; cellulis 10-12 /x diam., 15-20 /x longis, ad 

 apices praeditis cum superfkialibus cellulis superpositis ; piliferis cellulis hyalinis 

 18-22 [x diam. 



