1887.] NEW-YORK MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY. 29 



cone inwardly, until it ends in a spindle-shaped enlargement, 

 embedded in the pigmented retina. In this enlarged end the 

 rhabdom shows its nucleus. 



Close to the retina follows the above-mentioned sclasra, or 

 capsule of the whole compound eye, through which pass the 

 fibres of the optic nerve in bundles. Here the fibres cross each 

 other, and develop into a distinct layer, containing many ganglion- 

 cells. They then pass into another more striped layer, forming 

 the ganglion of the eye, and so finally over into the brain. 



Tracheae, dissolved into the finest bundles of tubes, surround 

 the ommatidia, passing up inside of the sclsera. 



POLYPORUS SANGUINEUS. 



BY P. H. DUDLEY, C. E. 



(Presented in connection with the specimen from Panama, exhibited by him, March 



18th, 1887.) 



This beautiful Polyporus, of cream colored cup, occasionally 

 tinged with pink, and having scarlet pores underneath, attracts 

 attention by its varied and brilliant colors. I have only seen it 

 growing, upon the Isthmus, first, upon Cyprus ties, from Florida, 

 where it is said to be common ; second, upon the sap-wood of 

 the Lignum-vitae ties, in the tracks of the Panama railroad. The 

 fact of finding it growing upon these two kinds of woods was 

 surprising and interesting ; for the structure and cell-contents of 

 these two woods are so dissimilar, that I did not expect to find 

 the same species of fungus growing upon both woods. It shows 

 that the mycelium of the fungus is able to sufficiently disorgan- 

 ize each of the woods, as specified, for the growth of its fruit. I 

 found more specimens on the Cyprus, than on the Lignum-vitae 

 ties, probably because the latter are so durable, as the heart- 

 wood lasts from twenty to twenty-five years in the track ; while 

 the Cyprus only lasts from two to three years. Lignum-vitaa is 

 the only wood, in its natural state, when used for ties, that is 

 able to resist decay for any length of time on the Isthmus. 

 Many of the native woods decay in less than a year. 



Near the Atlantic coast but one specimen of Polyporus san- 

 guineus was found, and this was upon a Cyprus tie, in the Aspin- 

 wall freight-yard. Trametes pini, Fr. and Lenzites abietma, Fr. 



