Mycetozoa of the Aiistwick distyict. 65 



abundance of the more common species ; Perichcena vermicnlaris 

 Rost., for instance — not by any means a common species for 

 the county — was turned up on dead leaves of Hawthorn, grass, 

 twigs, etc., along a quarter mile length of road — Slaidburn 

 Road — practically every small mass of vegetable matter yielding 

 a few sporangia of either the yellow or brown form. This 

 species also occurred along the old lane from Austwick to 

 Feizar, and in each case in the early part of the year — March 

 to May, 1915 and 1916. Lycogala epidendrum Fries., appears in 

 the Autumn in Trow Ghyll on the old Ash stumps in great 

 abundance, it is no uncommon sight to see large jnasses of 

 12-24 good sized sporangia. Brejeldia maxima Rost., also 

 on ash stumps in Trow Ghyll, which has again appeared this 

 year, has been dealt with in a previous article (see Naturalist, 

 July 1916, pp. 225-228). 



Such species as Physarum mttans Pers., P. viride Pers., 

 Fiiligo septica Gmelin. — often on the cut surface of the more 

 recently felled trees, though sometimes among the decaying 

 herbage — Hcmitrichia clavata Rost., Trichia varia Pers., T. 

 scabra Rost., T. af finis de Bary, T. decipiens Macbr., T. 

 Botrytis Pers., Arcyria denudata Sheldon, A. ferruginea Sauter, 

 A. cinerea Pers., Cribraria argillacea Pers., and C. aurantiaca 

 Schard., Stemonitis fusca Roth., 5. ferruginea Ehrenb., S. 

 jlavogenita Jahn., etc., appear each year with great regularity, 

 some of them in great abundance. I shall long remember 

 the mass of Tricha contorta Rost., including the typical 

 T. contorta with separate elaters, and the Hemitrichia Karstenii 

 Lister, which occurred in Catrigg Ghyll this year, a large mass 

 of logs and branches of Oak, Beech and Birch, but more 

 particularly the Beech, being covered with the yellow or brown 

 sporangia. I had never previously gathered more than a few 

 sporangia of this species, but here there were many square 

 yards of it. 



Margarita metallica is here most cosmopolitan, fruiting, 

 though always sparingly, on Oak, Beech, Ash, Birch, Pine, 

 Fern leaves, grass and Hazel. Prototrichia metallica Mass., 

 can usually be found, but always here on coniferous wood or 

 bark, and seldom more than 6-10 sporangia together. The old 

 Ash stumps in Trow Ghyll have probably provided the most 

 striking masses of these organisms. On several occasions the 

 stumps have been covered with sporangia of Trichia varia 

 Pers., Physarum nutans Pers. (often apparently preferring 

 partly charred portions), Trichia scabra Rost., Trichia persimilis 

 Karst., Hemitrichia clavata Rost., Arcyria denudata Sheldon 

 and Lycogala epidendrum ¥ vies. It appears sometimes as if 

 the various species were jostling one another to get to the 

 surface for fruiting. One wonders how the various plasmodia 

 have avoided getting in each other's way inside the wood, but 



'1918 Feb. 1. 



