1917] SPESSARD—PROTHALLIA OF LYCOPODIUM 67 



square, it seems probable that prothallia are rather abundant. 

 The probability is even greater since the discoverer of these 21 

 prothallia was almost absolutely ignorant of the appearance of 

 Ly co podium prothallia. 



The discovery of the original locality was almost an accident. 

 It is a place where one would least expect to find Lycopodium 

 prothallia, at least those of L. complanatum , L. clavatum, and 

 Z,. annotinum, since it is almost completely bare of adult sporo- 

 phytes of these 3 species. I was wandering about looking for 

 Morchella, when by chance I caught sight of an old sporeling of 

 L. clavatum, growing in an exposed position between some winter- 

 green plants. An examination of the soil showed no prothallium. 

 No adult sporophytes were within sight; but a sporeling is a good 

 sign, and this encouragement led me to make the final successful 

 search two days later. 



Lying to the northwest of Marquette, Michigan, are a brewery 

 and the remains of an old pesthouse. To the east of this pest- 

 house, about 700 m., is an open space bordering an open pasture 

 on the north, a small wooded swamp on the east, and a wood com- 

 posed of second growth poplar and maple on the west. A path 

 runs to the northwest from the road which leads from Marquette 

 to the pesthouse. Beside this path, at the distance indicated 

 from the pesthouse, 18 of the 21 prothallia and most of the spore- 

 lings were found. The other prothallia and sporelings were found 

 in two separate stations, the one half a mile, the other two miles 

 from this one described. 



The soil is mainly sand, covered in places by a very thin layer 

 of humus; that within the edge of the wood is a black sandy loam. 

 The specimens of L. annotinum and L. lucididum shown in figs. 9 

 and 10 are the only ones which were found in the sandy loam where 

 the ground is constantly shaded in summer. This specimen of 



enorm 



■hile 



All the other 



specimens and most of the 50 sporelings were found in open, 

 exposed, sandy places. The topography is uneven, rocks jutting 

 up here and there between water-logged regions. Scattered about 

 on the elevated regions are numerous small sandy knolls covered 



