816 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XVII. 



had got ill and died. Other villagers had the same story. I had previously be- 

 lieved that they were good for food, and that several of the low caste tribes 

 made a fry or a curry of their bodies ; possibly if really poisonous, the cooking 

 renders them wholesome ? For what special purpose these swarms of locusts 

 should come far into the interior of the hills and close to the very high snowy 

 ranges is difficult to understand. They can scarcely come for the purpose of 

 laying eggs. No young locusts are ever seen and although the wheat and 

 other hill crops were above ground none were touched ; and as I previously 

 mentioned, I never saw them eating anything whatever. I would add that all 

 the locusts I saw were of a pink colour. I was informed that they rarely visit 

 the district. 



Chamba, August 1906. G. S. RODON, Major. 



No. X— A NOTE ON AN EDIBLE PUFF-BALL FROM THE THANA 



DISTRICT. 



I place before the Society to-day a dried specimen of an edible Puff-ball 

 very commonly found in the Thana District, such as at Thana, Andheri, 

 Goregaum and adjacent fields. The specimen placed before the meeting is 

 very uninviting for culinary purposes. But when fresh-gathered, within 

 twenty-four hours after gathering, it can be cooked and served as a table 

 delicacy, in no way inferior to the French and English mushrooms served at 

 table. 



To students of Cryptogamic Botany the following note sent to me by 

 Mr. C. G. Lloyd from Paris where he is now studying the Fungi of France, will 

 be of interest. Mr. Lloyd is a distinguished American Cryptogamist 

 and his opinion therefore is worth quoting. In his letter, dated the 6th 

 May 1906, he writes to me thus : — " The Puff-balls that you packed 

 so carefully have reached me in good condition. They are Calvatia 

 Ulicina, Berk, and Mont., a species that grows probably in every country 

 in the world. These are the first I have received from India though 

 the plant is known from Ceylon. In North and South America, Africa, 

 the West Indies it is a very common species. It occurs in Europe but 

 is more rare, chiefly in the Southern Countries. It is not known from England. 

 Like all common plants it has a great many synonyms, " Fragilis " and 

 " cyathiformis " are the best known. The older Botanists place it in the 

 genus "Lycoperdon, " but it belongs to the genus " Calvatia " of the present 

 day, which differs from Lycoperdon in having a peridium that breaks into pieces 

 and does not open by a definite mouth. The species is easily known as the 

 only Calvatia with a lilac coloured gleba. The spores in your specimen are 

 mostly 6 /a. in diameter. A few small ones measure 5 /«.. I hope you will 

 continue to send such specimens as you can find. The Puff-balls of India are 

 very scantily known. While it is probable that you will not find many 

 novelties because these plants are of wide distribution in the world, it is of 



