]34 Journal of the Mitchell Society [September 



The fruiting of Pack y ma Cocos is manifestly of the type char- 

 acteristic of the genus Poriu which is recognized to include a hetero- 

 geneous group of forms but it is provisionally placed in this genus. 



When comparison is made with the descriptions in literature of 

 fungi arising from large sclerotia none of them are found to bear 

 any resemblance to our specimens. Grifola Tuckahoe Giissow (8), 

 for example, has coal black sclerotia with a blackish interior and its 

 fructifications are fleshy, stipitate, ochre to yellowish brown struc- 

 tures. PoJijporus tuhcrastcr (Jacq.) Fries as first illustrated by 

 Micheli (12) shows this species to possess an irregular, globular, 

 sclerotium enclosing stones and earth, from which arises a stipitate 

 polypore with angular pores. Pohjporus Sapurema MoUer from 

 Brazil has an enormous sclerotium from which a large fleshy stipi- 

 tate fruit body is developed. Lentinus tuber regium Rump, is a 

 large, stipitate, gill-bearing form. In fact, all hitherto known large 

 sclerotia whose fruiting stages have been found have large sporo- 

 phores whereas our specimens bear small fruit bodies. Further, no 

 other species of Poria is known to have a sclerotial stage. It is for 

 these reasons that V. G. Lloyd to whom specimens were sent for 

 determination is of the opinion that it is very improbable that there 

 could be any relationship between tuckahoe and Poria. 



The question of a species name is much more difficult since to 

 determine whether or not this form is different from previously de- 

 scribed species would involve a thorough-going study of all known 

 resupinate forms. Since, however, Pachyma Cocos is believed to be 

 parasitic and consequently its fruiting stage in all probability occurs 

 only on the surface of the sclerotia, it is entirely unlikely that it 

 has been observed or collected previously. The combination Poria 

 Cocos, is therefore proposed in order to connect our fungus with the 

 long known sclerotial stage name, witli llic following brief diagnosis. 



Poria Cocos (Schw.) coml). nov. 



Sclerotium giganteum Macbride. Trans. N. Y. Phil. Soc. 1817. 

 Sclerotium cocos Schw. Syn. Fung. Car. Sup., p. 56. 1822. 

 Pachyma cocos (Schw.) Fries. Syst. IMyeol. 2: ]). 242-243, 1823.* 



* Other Kynonyms given )).v Gore nre: 



P. unlidum Okcn. Jiehrbuch d. Naturgesch. 2 ter Tliiel. Hotiiiiik 2 t(>r Abtlieil, 1 to 

 Halfte, 1815. 



P. pinetnrvm Iloriininow, \^. 2-23, 1856. 



P. ronifeianiin Horaninow. (See continuation on i>. 1:15). 



