288 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



Fungi. 



Life-history of certain British Hetercecismal TJredinese. * — 

 C. B. Plowriglit finds the ascidiospores of both Uromi/ces Poce and 

 Puccinta Mngnuslana on Banunculus repens ; the two ascidia are not 

 to be distinguished anatomically. The a3cidiospores of U. dactj/lidea 

 and P. Marjmisiana, which are similarly indistinguishable, are found 

 on It. hulbosus. Uronnjccs Poce has its aecidiospores on B. Ficaria and 

 li. repens. The aecidium on B. acris belongs to the life-cycle of 

 P. perplexans, the teleutospores of which occur on Alopecurua 

 pratensis, Avena elaiior and Port sp. The uredosporcs of P . perplexans 

 are sometimes mixed with capitate paraphyscs and sometimes without 

 them. P. Phraf/mitis has its secidiospores on Bumex Hydralapathum, 

 B. ohtuslfulius, B. crispus, B. conglomeraius, and Bheum officinale. The 

 aecidium on Btimex acetosa is connected neither with P. Magmisiana 

 nor P. Phragmilis. The secidiura on Senecio Jacoboea belongs to the 

 cycle of a Carex inhabiting Puccinta, P. Schoeleriana. 



New Ustilaginea.t — F. IMorini describes, under the name Toly- 

 pospnrium Cocconii, a new fungus belonging to the Ustilaginese which 

 he finds in the neighbourhood of Bologna, on tlie leaves of Carex 

 recurva, causing sterility in the host. The chief interest of the 

 observation lies in the very difierent development of the fungus under 

 cultivation according as the spores are sown in a decoction of the 

 leaves of the Carex, in spring-water containing a large quantity of 

 lime, in distilled water, or in rain-water. Morini was unable to detect 

 any act of sexual reproduction. 



Law of Growth of the Fructification of Phycomyces.:}:— L- Errera 

 has repeated and confirmed the observations of Carney and Brefeld 

 with regard to the remarkable interruption of the growth of the 

 fructification of Phycoviyces nitens during the period of the formation 

 of the sporangium. This period of growth may be divided into four 

 stages, as follows: — (1) An erect branch, the fertile hypha, springs 

 from the mycelium. This grows in a vertical direction, first with an 

 increasing, then for some time with a constant, finally with a 

 decreasing rapidity, on the whole rather slowly. (2) After this 

 fertile hypha has attained a length varying from 1 to 20 mm., its 

 growth ceases, and its apex begins to swell into the globular bright 

 yellow sporangium, which increases gradually in size. During this 

 period the sporangiophore not only docs not increase in length, but 

 may even decrease slightly, the sporangium developing at its expense. 

 (3) Both sporangiophore and sporangium remain for two or three 

 hom'S absolutely unchanged, at least externally, or at most the 

 sporangium increases to a still further almost imperceptible extent at 

 the expense of the sporangiophore. The former still retains its 

 yellow, the lattei- its white colour. (4) After this period of rest the 



* Quart. Journ. Micr. Sci., xxv. (1885) pp. 151-72. 



t Mem. Accad. Sci. Bologna, v. (1884) 2 pis. See Bot. Ztg., xlii. (1884) 

 p. 699. 



X Bot. Ztg., xlii. (1884) pp. 497-503, 513-22. 529-37, 545-52, 561-6 (1 pi.). 



