24 CONNECTICUT GEOL. AND NAT. HIST. SURVEY. [Bull. 



out on their exterior. The spores are reddish brown, oblong 

 to polyhedral, chiefly irregular, smooth, but often showing 

 darker lines on surface due to pressure of spore mass, and 12- 

 18/u, or (most elongated) even 22^, in length. 



Host and Distr. : Cy perns iiliculmis, North Haven, July 

 26, 1902 ; Montowese, Sept. 14, 1903. 



This species was described originally from this state by the 

 writer, having been found not uncommon on the sand plains 

 near North Haven and Montowese. The affected plants look 

 very much like those free from the smut, but can usually be 

 detected by the darker aspect of the spikelets, which in this 

 sedge are clustered into heads. 



Cintractia Montagnei (Tul.) Magn. The sori occur 

 hidden in the ovaries, forming inconspicuous, oblong to sub- 

 spherical, usually dusty spore masses. The spores are brown 

 or brownish black, often compressed laterally, and so appear- 

 ing ovoid to subspherical or occasionally more irregular and 

 angled, smooth but minutely pitted, and 12719/z, chiefly 13-16/i, 

 in length ; they are very often provided with conspicuous, hya- 

 line, wing-like bladders on either side. 



Host and Distr. : Rhynchospora alba, Berlin, Sept. 3, 

 1902; Cheshire, Oct. 25, 1903. 



This is another smut readily overlooked, because the in- 

 conspicuous sori are hidden by the floral bracts. 



Cintractia Caricis (Pers.) Magn. Figs. 8, 27. The sori 

 form subspherical bodies about 3-4 mm. in diameter in the 

 ovaries ; at first the sorus is protected by a white membrane 

 of sterile fungous tissue, but this soon wears off, revealing the 

 black, firmly agglutinated spore mass, the spores of which 

 gradually ripen and wear off toward the interior. The spores 

 arc black-brown, subopaque, chiefly irregular polyhedral, or 

 occasionally ovoid to subspherical, smooth or pitted to gran- 

 ular or even papillate, and 16-27^, chiefly 18-22/i, in length. 



Host and Distr. : Carex Pennsylvania, Rainbow, June 6, 

 1903; East Hartford, June 1, 1904 (Weatherby). 



This variable, smut has been reported on a large number of 

 Carex species in North America, but the above is the one upon 

 which it commonly occurs. The illustration shows it in the 

 ovaries at the base of the staminate spikelet of this host. 



