INVERTEBEATA, CRYPTOGAMIA, MICROSCOPY, ETC, 759 



The fungus which gives rise to the " gclerotium complanatum," 

 not uncommon in the neighbourhood of Paris, is Clavaria juncea, 

 while the species which grows from the development of the sclerotium 

 is a very delicate one, placed in an allied genus, and known as 

 Typhula jjJiacorrhiza, which was, however, described by Desmazieres as 

 a variety of Clavaria juncea parasitic on the sclerotium. The " sclero- 

 tium varium " was found to develop into a Peziza allied to P. tuhe- 

 rosa. The sclerotium which gives rise to Acjaricus cirratus is " s. 

 subterraneum var. truncorum." The "sclerotium varium" causes a 

 destructive disease in Jerusalem artichokes. 



New Genus of Sphseriacese.* — Some years ago M. de Seynes 

 gathered in a garden in the neighbourhood of Montpellier a twig of 

 wood, on which were black elevations caused by the attacks of a fungus 

 belonging to a genus new to science, to which he gave the name 

 Euvijtlieca monspeliensis. While belonging to the Sphasriacea3 it ap- 

 pears to present some characters intermediate between that family 

 and the Tuberacese. The asci are placed in considerable numbers 

 side by side in the tissue of the stroma ; they are of an elliptical form, 

 with trans j)arent walls, and measure about O'Dlto 0-055 m. The 

 spores are^large, 0*025 to 0'03 m, in length, the number in each 

 ascus varying between four and eight, as is frequently the case in the 

 Tuberacete. There are no paraphyses. 



Specific Differences among the TJredinese.t— The /wH/jjerMs Oxy- 

 cedri of the Mediterranean region is often attacked by a Podisoma, 

 which has generally been regarded as identical with the P. Jimiperi 

 so abundant on the common juniper. M. Cornu has succeeded in 

 studying this fungus by cultivating it, in its form of Bcestelia 

 laceiata, on the leaves of the hawthorn, and has fully established its 

 identity. 



The spermogonia appeared abundantly at the end of fifteen days 

 or less. It is probable, however, that many ^cidia which appear 

 identical are not so in reality. De Bary has shown that the species 

 parasitic on the haricot and the common bean, so alike externally, are 

 not identical, but differ from one another as greatly as the Uromyces 

 Phaseolornm and U. Fahce from which they proceed. It is much 

 more difficult to distinguish from one another the secidial than the 

 teleutospore forms ; and it is no doubt for this reason that the num- 

 ber of species of Puccinia is much greater than that of ^cidium, 

 even when from the former are excluded those which, like P. Biantlii 

 and P. Malvacearmn, reproduce themselves directly without any 

 alternation of generations. Of two hawthorn-bushes on which the 

 spores of the Podisoma were sown, one perished entirely, the other 

 appeared to die all except a single bougli, which, when the plant was 

 placed in a greenhouse, gave birth to a branch of very peculiar struc- 

 ture, with short sessile leaves and axillary branches, the whole of 

 which was strongly infested with the Eoestelia, appearing in February, 

 far from its normal time of year. The parasite was feeble, and pro- 



* ' Bull. Soc. Bot. France,' xxv. (1878) p. 87. t IWd., p. 221. 



