282 NATURAL HISTORY BULLETIN. 



Habitat — Grown on cow dung, in culture, in the laboratory. 



The material on which these specimens were grown, had 

 been kept dry in the laboratory for several weeks. It was 

 then moistened and placed under a bell jar. In a few days 

 abundant growth was seen. The first discomycetes to be 

 found being those of Ascobolus furfuraceus, which were 

 mature in about one week from the time the material was 

 placed in culture. About the same time, the much smaller 

 plants of Ascobolus immersus made their appearance. Ou 

 removing the bell jar, the minute plants with their emergent 

 asci filled with dark colored spores presented a very beaut'iful 

 appearance under the hand lens. In a few minutes, the asci 

 disappeared, having ejected their spores. The asci are pro- 

 truded half their own length or more but only the spores are 

 ejected. 



Ascobolus furfuraceus Pers. 

 Plate XV, fig. n. 



1791 Pjziza stcrcoraria Bulliard, Champ., t. Ill, p. 376. 



1801 Ascobolus furfuraceus Persoon, Syn. Fung. II, p. 676. 



1817 Ascobolus furfuraceus Martius, Flora Crypt., p. 472. 



1<S23 Ascobolus furfuraceus Fries, Syst. Myc. II, p. 163. 



1828 Ascobolus furfuraceus Fries, Elench, Fung. I, p. 16. 



1833 Ascobolus furfuraceus Link, Hantlbk. , III, p. 332. 



1860 Ascobolus furfuraceus Berkeley, Outl. of Brit. Fung., p. 374. 



1871 Ascobolus furfuraceus Cooke, Handbk. of Brit. Fung., II, p. 727. 



1887 Ascobolus furfutaceus DeBary, Morph. of Fung. , p. 296, 186, 92. 



1887 Ascobolus furfuraceus Phillips, Brit. Disc, p. 290. 



1887 Ascobolus furfuraceus Goebel, Class, and Sp. Morph., p. 110. 



1889 Ascobolus furfuraceus Saccardo, Sylloge Fung., VIII, p. 516. 



1900 Ascobolus furfuraceus Durand, Bull. Tor. Bot. Club, 27, p. 481. 



1902 Ascobolus furfuraceus Morgan, Jour, of Myc, 64, p. 182. 



Sessile, gregarious, globose, then expanded, i to 5 mm. in 

 diameter, externally pale yellow, covered with bran-like par- 

 ticles, especially near the margin; hymenium concave, some- 

 times plane or slightly convex, same color when young, 

 becoming dark with age on account of the dark colored 

 spores; flesh very brittle; asci clavate, emergent; sporidia 

 elliptical, reticulate, violet, then brown, 20 to 25 by 10 to 12; 



