328 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF FUNGI 



to elaborate any scheme of general distribution. In the case 

 of the two genera given above, it should have been stated 

 that both are wholly terrestrial, and similar in their habitats. 



The genus Cortinarius is one of considerable interest, not 

 only for the beauty of many of the species, but also on 

 account of its distribution. The number of described species 

 is 391, of which 371 belong to Europe and the United 

 States, and of these 68 are confined to America. The residue 

 include 14, chiefly from the most southern part of South 

 America, really temperate, 1 from Tasmania (nine other 

 European species occur in Australia), 3 species from a tem- 

 perate elevation on the Himalayas, and 1 species each from 

 Japan and the Canaries. The only tropical species is one 

 from Brazil. This is, therefore, a genus of strictly temperate 

 regions, not a single species being found in Ceylon, the West 

 Indies, or Africa. Two hundred of the 371 European species 

 are found in Sweden, and about 180 in Great Britain. 



The two closely allied genera, Lactarius and Bussula, 

 belong also to the northern parts of the temperate zone. The 

 119 species of Lactarius include 85 European and 27 North 

 American species, one each from Madeira, Tasmania, temperate 

 Himalayas, and Japan. This leaves only the three Algerian 

 species outside of the temperate zone. For Bussula 112 

 species are recorded, which are thus distributed — 96 to 

 Europe, 12 to the United States, and 2 to Australia. This 

 leaves only two tropical species — one to Ceylon and one to 

 Venezuela. Australia contains 5 species of Lactarius, of which 

 4 are European ; and 1 species of Eussula, of which 8 are 

 European. 



The only remaining genus which we purpose to analyse 

 is that of Coprinus, in which the pileus is usually very thin, 

 the gills deliquescent, and the spores black. The number of 

 described species is 172, of which 117 are European, and 19 

 peculiar to the United States. The one species from the 

 Canaries is almost temperate, and also the three Australian 

 species. For tropical regions — 12 species for South America, 

 3 for the West Indies, 3 for Egypt and Mesopotamia, and 9 

 for Ceylon; 1 for Bonin Island, 1 for Java, and 3 for South 

 Africa. Many of the species are widely distributed, and 



