204 



THE MICROSCOPE. 



drawn off, and the bottle be exposed to the light of the sun, 

 the Desmidiacece will remain unaltered for a long time. 



The Desmidiacece prefer an open country. They abound 

 on moors and in exposed places, but are rarely found in 

 shady woods or in deep ditches. To search for them in 

 turbid waters is useless ; such situations are the haunts of 

 animals not the habitats of the Desmidiacece; and the 

 waters in which the latter are present are always clear to 

 the very bottom. 



That very curious fungus, known in Scotland as Siller- 

 cups (Nidularia campanulata), fig. 113, consists of a 



Fig. 113. Siller-cups (Nidularia campanulata). 



curious leathery cup, in which are a number of small 

 thecse, these contain the sporules ; and each plant looks 

 like a bird's nest with several eggs in it. It generally 

 grows on a twig, or a bit of rotten wood, and one has been 

 found growing on a wooden tally, fixed in a pot containing 

 a greenhouse plant. Several kinds of Agaricus have 

 blue stems, others orange, yellow, and green, with caps of 

 various colours, some of which are scarlet or crimson, and 

 others have beautiful shades of purple or violet. 



