THE OKXU.S ML'CUK. 



8porungii)|>Iiort*s. Tlie !izy;ro.s|M>iM>s are forini'il, sinfjly iiiul indo- 

 peiiiKMitly, un the iipirt«.s of hnuiclies uf jin cioct 8|*oriiiif.'io|>li(jie, 

 arising' fioiii tlie nutrient substiatuui (or tlie iiiyceliuui), and 

 wliicli tliLMefore an-sinnt-s a clusteriMl appwiranc-e. It is repre- 

 seiiteil in Fi-;. 115. On tlu* utln-r liiiiul, noriniil zygospores have 

 n(»t liitlierto bei-n discovereil on this fun^'us. 



Mucor /rui/iliit liainier resemhhjs the foregoinj^ species as 

 regards the structure of the sporangium ; except that the hitter 

 is smaller. The siime applies al>o 

 to the spores, which are oval in 

 shape, about 4 /t in length, and 2 

 fi in breadth. 



Mu'ur s/>itiinfitj< run 'I'ii'ijhetii 

 owes its sj)ecitic name to the spiny 

 projections, exhibited, to the num- 

 ber of about a dozen, on the crown 

 of the cylinilrical or pearshajieil 

 columella. In preparations sub- 

 merged in water, the membrane 

 quickly dissolves and vanishes from 

 sight, leaving a picture recalling 

 that of the head of a conidiophore 

 of any A.<per</il/u.<. On this account 

 the fungus was at one time called 

 Mucor OKpcrijiUoidt'it, though the 

 name has now gone out of use. 



Mucor circtneUoidcs run Tietj- 

 lunii, and Mucor <iItfrnau.-< C'ln 7'/V</- 

 Jwiii, are very similar in a morpho- 

 logical sense, particulars on which 

 point will be found iletiiiled by 

 Alk. FlsciiKU ( 1 1 1-) The former 

 of the two has been drawn by 

 Gayon {VI. ). and the other by 

 (Javon and 1 )llK)ru(; ( II 1.). Mor- 

 phologically, l)oth species form con- 

 necting links between the allied genera Mucor and CirciwIJa, 

 which latter ditVers chiefly from the former by the drcH»ping 

 njanner in whiidi the sjtorangia oveihang and by the resistance 

 of their membrane. 



Mit'iir /iiri/oriiii.<, which wasfii-st dist-<>\ > in-d i^on r>>tii'ii apples) 

 nnil (Kvseribed bv .Vi-KKKO Fisi hkk(I 1 1.), was .so called on .account 

 of the pear-like shape of the ctdumella, the V«i«ider (alnnit 

 140 to 2 So /t) upper end of which extends a dist^mce of about 

 200 to 300 /t within the sporangium. When light is admitted 

 to cultures of this fungus, grown in a suitable nutrient solution, 

 it elabonites compamtively huge tpiantities of citric acid fj-oin 



Kiu. 1 14.— Chtin>yiI>«iiiucor race- 

 iiinsiis HrvfoUI. 



I. Branclietl 

 Mntni. fv>. 



.. 0|itii'nl Kectioii of s|Hiniiii;iuni. 

 more hJKlilv niii^iiitltKi ( u<u tiiuMiX 

 (Ajtfr BrrJeUl.) 



sporangiophore. 



