250 



OTHER BASIDIOMYCETES 



been shed. It has been estimated that a moderate-sized specimen 

 will produce some 1,800,000,000 spores, and other allied species 

 form spores in even greater profusion ! 



In the genus Boletus, whose fruit-body has the same general 

 form as that of the Mushroom, the underside of the cap presents 

 the structure of a honeycomb, consisting of a multitude of vertical 

 tubes, the inner surfaces of which are lined with hymenium 

 (Fig. 134, E). A similar construction is seen in the Bracket 

 Fungus (Polyporus squamosus), whose thick tough fruit-bodies 

 are commonly found on decaying tree-trunks, to which they are 

 attached along one side of the cap (Fig. 133). Some of the 

 related Fungi (e.g. Dcedalea quercina) have woody fructifications 



which may persist for several 

 years. In Hydnum (Fig. 

 134, F) the hymenium covers 

 the numerous pointed pro- 

 jections arising from the 

 underside of the cap. 



As further instances of 

 the diversity of form pre- 

 sented by the fruit-bodies 

 of the Basidiomycetes, men- 

 tion may be made of the 

 purple encrusting fruits of 

 the Fungus responsible for 

 the Silver-leaf disease of the 

 Plum (Stereum purpureum), of the Puff-balls (Lycoperdon, Fig. 

 134, C), whose spores form a powdery mass within the pear- 

 shaped fructification, and of the Coral Fungus (Clavaria, Fig. 

 134, B), where the fruit-body is richly branched and bears the 

 hymenium over its entire surface. 



In conclusion, a brief reference must be made to the Slime 

 Fungi (Myxomycetes), whose relation to other Thallophyta is 

 exceedingly obscure ; in some respects they show decided re- 

 semblances to Protozoa, although the methods of multiplication 

 recall those habitual among lower plants. The Slime Fungi are 

 most evident in damp weather, when the large naked protoplasmic 

 masses (plasmodia), constituting the vegetative phase, creep out 

 from the crevices of the decaying tree stumps, humus, or other 



FIG. 133. The Bracket Fungus (Poly- 

 porus squamosus). [Photo : E. J. S.] 



