Fig. 825. 



A FUNGUS? I received from H. L. Hammerstein, German 

 East Africa, a curious thing (Fig. 825) that looks something like a 

 dried phalloid, but I doubt if it is a fungus 

 at all, although I can not suggest what it 

 is. It forms a lattice work like a Clathrus, 

 with granular surface. When soaked, the 

 tissue is composed of these granules, 

 loosely coherent, and easily crumbled 

 under pressure. Mashed under the mi- 

 croscope, these granules are seen to be 

 formed of thick, short, tubular hyphae, 

 12 mic. in diameter, with thick walls, and 

 similar to the hyphae of a fungus. Ad- 

 herent to the surface like the gleba of a 

 phalloid, is a dark, amorphous substance 

 that under the microscope is not resolved into any definite structure, 

 and has nothing analogous to spores, basidia or asci. The thing is a 

 mystery to me, and I publish a photograph hoping it may come to 

 the notice of some one who is informed on the subject and can throw 

 some light on it. 



CORDYCEPS SOBOLIFERA (Fig. 826). Since our article on 

 the Japanese Cordyceps sobolifera (page 575) has been in type we 

 were most agreeably gratified to receive from L. J. K. Brace, Ba- 

 hamas, a fine specimen (Fig. 826) of this species from the West Indies, 

 the original home. Cordyceps sobolifera was named 

 (Clavaria sobolifera) and figured crudely by Watson 

 in Philosophical Transactions in 1761. He called it 

 "The Vegetable Fly," and to illustrate the crude ideas 

 they had of the nature of Cordyceps in those early 

 days we reproduce his remarks: "The Vegetable Fly 

 is found in the Island Dominica, and (excepting that 

 it has no wings) resembles the drone, both in size and 

 colour, more than any other English insect. In the 

 month of May it buries itself in the earth and begins 

 to vegetate. By the latter end of July the tree ar- 

 rives at its full growth and resembles a coral branch, 

 and is about three inches high, and bears several little 

 pods which dropping off, become worms, and from 

 thence flies, like the English caterpillar." 



Cordyceps sobolifera is peculiar among the 

 species of Cordyceps in its method of bearing fruit. 

 __ Tulasne mentions it indefinitely, but his figure which 

 a. 826. was ma( ie f rom an i mper f ect specimen, does not 

 show it. The fertile clubs are three, as shown in our figure, but 

 usually only one, and generally deformed. The secondary spores are 

 very narrow, about 1x8-12 mic. At the base of the fertile clubs 

 bearing these ascus spores are a cluster of abortive processes To the 

 eye they are same texture and color as the fertile clubs, but the mi- 

 croscope shows that they bear only conidial spores. These are hyaline, 

 narrowly elliptical, about 4x8 mic. 



584 



