250 



OTHER BASIDIOMYCETES 



been shed. It has been estimated that a moderate-sized specimen 

 will produce some 1,800,000,000 spores, and other allied species 

 form spores in even greater profusion ! 



In the genus Boletus, whose fruit-body has the same general 

 form as that of the Mushroom, the underside of the cap presents 

 the structure of a honeycomb, consisting of a multitude of vertical 

 tubes, the inner surfaces of which are lined with hymenium 

 (Fig. 134, E). A similar construction is seen in the Bracket 

 Fungus [Polyporus sqitamosus), whose thick tough fruit-bodies 

 are commonly found on decaying tree-trunks, to which they are 

 attached along one side of the cap (Fig. 133). Some of the 

 related Fungi [e.g. Dadalea qucrcina) have woody fructifications 



which may persist for several 

 years. In Hydnuni (Fig. 

 134, F) the hymenium covers 

 the numerous pointed pro- 

 jections arising from the 

 underside of the cap. 



As further instances of 

 the diversity of form pre- 

 sented by the fruit-bodies 

 of the Basidiomycetes, men- 

 tion may be made of the 

 purple encrusting fruits of 

 the Fungus responsible for 

 the Silver-leaf disease of the 

 Plum [Stereum purpiireum), of the Puff-balls [Lycoperdon, Fig. 

 134, C), whose spores form a powdery mass within the pear- 

 shaped fructification, and of the Coral Fungus {Clavaria, Fig. 

 134, B), where the fruit-body is richly branched and bears the 

 hymenium over its entire surface. 



In conclusion, a brief reference must be made to the Slime 

 Fungi (Myxontycetes), whose relation to other Thallophyta is 

 exceedingly obscure ; in some respects they show decided re- 

 semblances to Protozoa, although the methods of multiplication 

 recall those habitual among lower plants. The Slime Fungi are 

 most evident in damp weather, when the large naked protoplasmic 

 masses (Plasmodia) , constituting the vegetative phase, creep out 

 from the crevices of the decaying tree stumps, humus, or other 



Fig. 133. — The Bracket Fungus {Poly- 

 porus sqiiamosus). [Photo: E. J. S.] 



