144 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [May 
BIOLOGICAL NOTES. 
L. H. PAMMEL. 
MYXOBACTERIA.—Since the publication of Dr. Thax- 
ter’s excellent account of Myxobacteria in 1892, several 
papers dealing with this interesting group of bacteria 
have been published. The species though mostly Ameri- 
can have also been found in Europe and Liberia in Afri- 
ca. Zukal has found four species of the genus Chondro- 
myces in Vienna. C. Lorrain Smith in a recent number 
of the Journal of Botany describes a Myxococcus pyri- 
formis found on the pellets of the rabbit dung. This or- 
ganism produces pear-shaped cysts of a bright pinkish- 
orange-color on a short transparent gelatinous stalk. The 
cocci are round or somewhat oval. The colonies in culture 
tubes are colorless or dirty white consisting of motile rods. 
(Jour. Bot. 39 : 69-72, 1f). 
NEMATODE GALLS ON MARINE ALG#.—Ethel S. Barton 
describes nematode galls found on Furcellaria fastigiata 
and Chrondus crispus. Thus far little attention has been 
‘given to the subject of gall formation in algw. The galls 
form irregular knobs, due to the fact that they exceed or 
equal in size the diameter of the main stalk. The cells be- 
low and around the galls contained small granules which 
seem to correspond to Van Tieghem’s Floridean starch 
which consists chiefiy of Amylodextrin. (Jour. Bot. 39: 
49-51, Pl. 418, f. 1-6). 
MusHRooms.—Much interest has in recent years been 
manifested in the study of mushrooms in this country, 
partly because of their undoubted food-value. Hamilton 
Gibson perhaps did as much as anyone else to popularize 
the subject. But several botanists have done much to 
bring the subject before the public in an intelligent way. 
Among the earlier writers mention may be made of Cur- 
tiss, of North Carolina. Of the more recent contributions 
the valuable papers by Farlow and Peck should be men- 
