THE SAPROPHYTIC FUNGI OF EASTERN IOWA. c^ 



Dovista subterranea^ Bot. Gaz., v. 216. 1879. It does not 

 appear so far in our collections from eastern Iowa, but has 

 been sent in from our western counties. It is an inhabitant of 

 dry prairies and in some parts of South Dakota literally covers 

 the ground, as. for instance, in the valley of the Chevenne. 



V. BO VIST EL LA Morgan. 



Mycelium funicular, rooting" from the base. Sporocarp 

 subglobose, with a well developed base; outer peridium a 

 dense floccose sub-persistent coat; inner peridium membrana- 

 ceous, dehiscent by a regular apical ostiole. Sterile portion 

 cellulose, cup-shaped above and definitely limited, persistent; 

 capillitium originating within the tissue of the gleba; the 

 threads free, short, several times dichotomously branched, the 

 main stem thicker than the diameter of the spores, the branches 

 tapering; spores small, globose or oval, smooth, pedicellate. 



A puff-ball of moderate size, growing in fields and open 

 woods; it has the peridium of a Lycoperdon and the capilli- 

 tium of a Bovista. The threads of the capillitium originate 

 within the tissue of the gleba. along with the spores, and after 

 deliquescence are left perfectly free within the peridium; 

 they are altogether different from the slender sub-hyaline 

 hyphae which compose the w r all of the inner peridium and 

 have connection with them. 



1. Bovistella ohiensis Ellis & Morgan. 



Sporocarp globose or broadly ovoid. 1^2-3 inches high and 

 about the same in diameter, sometimes much depressed, pli- 

 cate underneath, with a thick cord-like root; outer peridium 

 a dense floccose coat, sometimes segregated into soft warts or 

 spines, white or grayish in color: this dries up into a thick 

 buff-colored or dirty brown layer, which gradually falls away, 

 leaving a smooth, shining, pale brown surface to the inner 

 peridium; sterile portion broad, ample, occupying nearby one- 

 half of the peridium, a long time persistent; mass of spores 

 and capillitium lax, friable, clay-colored or pale brown, threads 

 pale brown , 3-5 times branched, the branches tapering, main 



