216 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF FUNGI 



following, in which the perithecia are more and more im- 

 mersed, until they entirely disappear in the matrix. These 

 are the Zophiostomaceae and the Endoxyleae, the Ceratostomeae 

 being rather a parallel than a consecutive series. 



The Zophiostomaceae find a place in the Sylloge as a sepa- 

 rate group, and are regarded as a link between Hysteriaceae 

 and Sphaeriaceae, on account of the broad compressed mouth of 

 the perithecia ; there is, however, no real affinity, but rather 

 analogy, between them. This subfamily includes the Sphaeria 

 platystomae of Persoon, and consists of species which are simple 

 in habit, with the base of the perithecium flattened and 

 adnate, or partially imbedded in the matrix, so as to be sub- 

 superficial. In texture they are mostly hard and carbon- 

 aceous, with the broad ostiolum more or less compressed, 

 opening by a very narrow fissure. The sporidia are very 

 variable, except that the hyaline continuous form is absent. 

 There is but one genus in all the seven sections based upon 

 the character of the sporidia, according to Saccardo's arrange- 

 ment, but which we unite in three genera — Zophiosphaera, with 

 hyaline sporidia ; Zophiostoma, with coloured sporidia ; and 

 Zophidium, with muriform sporidia. 



Parallel with this and the succeeding subfamily must be 

 placed the Ceratostomaceae, in which the perithecia are usually 

 immersed, but sometimes subsuperficial, either somewhat car- 

 bonaceous or almost membranaceous — two genera to the former, 

 and one to the latter. In Ceratostomella the sporidia are 

 hyaline, and in Ceratostoma coloured. In their entirety they 

 were formally included by Fries in his Sphaeria Ceratostomae, 

 on account of the elongated beak -like ostiolum. The remain- 

 ing genus Gnomonia, with submembranaceous perithecia, 

 contains minute species, usually growing on dead leaves or 

 petioles, with the long ostiola protruding like bristles. The 

 habit is the same in the subgenera, but the sporidia are con- 

 tinuous, uniseptate, or rarely triseptate, or still more rarely 

 thread-like, but always uncoloured. 



In sequence from the Zophiostomaceae follows the thirteenth 

 subfamily, Endoxyleae, which corresponds to the Sphaeriae 

 immersae, of Fries. The perithecia are immersed in the 

 matrix, usually rotten wood, with only the short erumpent 



