166 THE MVXOMYCKTES OF PICTOU COUNTY. — MOORE. 



and, l)('f(ire Iniiir. carli licciunes soiiicwhat clniiuatcil oi' pear- 

 pJiaped and (l('\clii);> ;i tla^cllinii, ]»v means dl' whuli ir. is ablti 

 1/) move rapidly throuiih tho water willi a eliaraeteristie. jerking 

 motion. J)nrin_ir tliis staL^<' the " swarniers,"' so called, increase 

 rapidlv in mnnhei- l»y divi-iini; hut eventuallv ihey settle <!(twn, 

 the flagella are wiilidrawn and they a.<i-ain assume the tinurboid 

 form, eree])inii; (i\-er ilie snlistratnni. S()f)n a number of the 

 amoGbao coalesce to t'urni a >niall pnildjdasniic mass Avhicli con- 

 tinues to exhibit anaeboid movements as a whole and chara<'ter- 

 istic internal protoplasmic streamings. The plasmodimn, as the 

 protoplasmic mas- i- now oalled, increases in size by fusion with 

 other amoebae and hy the ingestion and assimilation of food 

 material until the condition <if maturity is a1taiiH'(l whidh leads" 

 to the fruiting or i-eproductive phase. The whole plasmodinnuKAV 

 becomes heaped up into a nmnber of protuberances into which 

 the whole of its -[jrotoplasm jyasses, with the exception, in some 

 cases, of a .small portion which remains behind to form a film- 

 like coating over the substratum ami wliich is known as t]ie 

 liypothalkis. When these protnl)erances are distinct from each 

 other they are known as s])orangia, and these may 1)0 either 

 sessile or stipitale. T/lie sti];e may he ])rolonge(l into or through 

 the cavity of the sj:orangium to f<»rm a columella. When the 

 sporangia are v<'in like oi- sinuous, I'etaining largcdy the charac- 

 teristic form of the Plasmodium, the fructitication is descrihe(l 

 as pla>modiocar])ous, or as a plasmodiocarp. In other cases the 

 sporangia arc partially fused togethei'. the walls between tjiem 

 may be im}K^rfc<'tly dev(do])e(l and their individuality to a cei'- 

 tain extent lost. Such a form of frtict iticatiDn is known avS 

 anfcthalinm and is w<dl exem]>litied by -uch a spiudes as Fnhijo 

 ovata. 



The protoplasm of the interior of the s]>oran<iia i- for the 

 most part converted into sj)ores; i)ui a residual portion fre- 

 quently gives rise to a caidllitiuni. d his nuiy consist of a uet- 

 Work of threads oj- tubules extending- thi'oughout tJu' cavity of 



