160 Journal of the Mitchell Society [June 



and on bark at the bases of trees. It was originally descril)ed from 

 North Carolina by Schweinitz as a Thelephora. See Burt. I.e. p. 756, 

 for a full description. 



Salem. Schweinitz. 



DACRYMYCETACEAE 



Small plants growing; on wood; texture gelatinous and soft or 

 toughish-gelatinous to more or less cartilaginous; form various, up- 

 right and single or branched like a Clavaria (as in species of Calocera), 

 or forming simple or complicated little cushions which may be smooth 

 or much folded or more or less flattened (as in Dacrymyces) or some- 

 what cup-shaped or spathulate (as in Guepiuia). The important dis- 

 tinctions are microscopic and are based on the basidia and spores. 

 The former are branched above into two long, thick sterigmata which 

 gradually taper to the pointed ends where the two spores are borne. 

 The color of the plants is usually yellow or orange, and they are some 

 times viscid. Spores smooth, elliptic, usually bent, divided across 

 into two or more cells at least before sprouting, orange or creamy 

 yellow. See Brefeld: Untersurchungen aiis dem Gesamtgehiete der 

 Mykologie 7:138. 1888. Also see Tulasne, as cited under Tremel- 

 laceae. 



Key to the Genera 



Plants sessile, gelatinous, pulvinate, the surface convo- 

 luted; spores divided into four or more cells before 

 sprouting Dacrymyces 



Plants with a smooth, gelatinous stalk, swollen above 

 into a convoluted head which bears the hymenium ; 

 spores as in Dacrymyces Dacryumitia 



Plants with a short, subcartilaginous stalk, the small 

 head rounded or flattened horizontally like a carpet 

 tack and little if at all convoluted Dacryopsis 



Plants stalked, upright, spathulate, or cup-shaped, or 

 petalloid; tough, the sterile stalk pubescent; spores 

 divided into two cells before sprouting Gucpinia 



Plants stalked or subsessile by a central point, enlarged 

 above, fleshy-tough, the hymenium gelatinous; spores 

 divided into two cells before sprouting Biiiola 



Plants stalked, upright, slender, simple or branched like 

 Clavaria, toughish and usually viscid ; stalk hot pubes- 

 cent ; spores divided into two cells before sprouting.. ..C'a/of^f /-a 



DACRYMYCES 



Gelatinous, sessile, pulvinate, subhemispheric or flattened, usually 

 convoluted on the surface like a brain, the entire exposed surface 



