82 PLANT LIFE. 



which gives a cellulose reaction, and still possesses the 

 power of movement, creeping over the surface of decayed 

 wood, etc. The most pronounced feature of the Myxo- 

 mycetes is that the entire vegetative stage is passed in this 

 condition, the motile Plasmodium moving about and feeding 

 on organic matter. During the winter the Plasmodium 

 retires into the crevices of decaying wood or amongst leaves, 

 and under certain conditions secretes a thick wall and passes 

 into a resting-stage. As a rule the plasmodium is bright 

 coloured, sometimes pure white, and in the active condition 

 is of a semi-liquid nature, so that it cannot be handled 

 without becoming resolved into a shapeless mass resembling 

 the white of an egg in consistency. At the end of the 

 vegetative period the Plasmodium comes to the surface of 

 the substance amongst which it previously passed its exist- 

 ence, and not unfrequently creeps up the stems of grass or 

 twigs for the purpose of forming its spores. The passage 

 from the vegetative to the reproductive phase is abrupt : 

 when the plasmodium has placed itself in a favourable 

 position exposed to light, the protoplasm at once becomes 

 converted into spore-containing bodies or sporangia, which 

 vary considerably in form and size in different species. In 

 the simpler forms the plasmodium becomes differentiated 

 into a protective covering or sporangial-wall and spores 

 only ; whereas in the higher forms, in addition to the above, 

 a portion of the protoplasm is formed into threads, often 

 forming a network, mixed with the spores, and known as the 

 capillitium, which in some instances is elastic and aids in 

 the dispersion of the spores. The sporangia are often 

 brilliantly coloured and present very beautiful shapes. 

 When individually small, the sporangia are frequently pro- 

 duced in great numbers from the plasmodium, and form 



