34 



NATURAL HISTORY BULLETIN. 



fication in a single season. Most, however, seem to be per- 

 ennial; at any rate their mycelial or vegetative phase endures 

 for many months or possibly years before ever fruit is formed 

 at all. In the case of the very largest forms it is probable 

 also that fruiting when it does occur entirely exhausts the 

 mycelium and so terminates for the time the history of the 

 species for that locality. Some species appear in fruit again 

 and again in the same locality doubtless continuing as long as 

 the substratum continues to furnish the requisite nutrition. 

 Details as to spore-formation are given under each section. 



The habitats are various. Many are lignatile, occurring on 

 logs, stumps, half-buried sticks, boards or ligneous fruits; 

 others are terrestrial, but even these, of course, depend for their 

 nutrition upon the decomposing organic matter, remains 

 of leaves, stems, twigs, buried in the humus. Some of the 

 terrestrial forms are even subterraneous, but unfortunately none 

 of these have so far here been brought to our attention. They 

 are probably overlooked. 



In popular estimation puff-balls are always noxious if not 

 poisonous. According to Fries such is their most ancient repu- 

 tation. Scotch people call them " blin' ba's" alluding to the 

 notion apparently common that the dry spores affect the eyes. 

 On the other hand it may be said that in Europe, at least, espe- 

 cially southern Europe, several species have long been recog- 

 nized as suitable for food, some are even reckoned delicacies. 

 It is probable that few are poisonous, although the greater 

 number are inedible simply because unfit to eat, woody, bitter, 

 etc. The effect of the spores upon the eyes is purely mechan- 

 ical, and probably in no wise different from that of any other 

 dust. Spores and capillitium were at one time regarded as 

 possessed of special styptic properties, but such agencies in 

 surgery have fallen into disuse. 



Puff-balls frequent the warmer or temperate regions of the 

 globe and are found in every land. Those of North America 

 have been less perfectly studied. The United States Species 

 of Lycoperdon by Dr. Chas. H. Peck, North American Gas- 

 teromycetes by A. P. Morgan, and Morels and Ptif-balls of 



