150 FUNGUS-FLOEA. 



On rotten wood, brandies, inside bark, &c. Distinguished 

 from allies by absences of paraphyses, and in the margin 

 ascending and becoming angularly contracted when dry. 



AGYEIUM. Fries, (figs. 34-35, p. 12.) 



Ascophore erumpent, roundish or elongated, sessile, convex, 

 immarginate, excipulum almost absent; somewhat gelatinous 

 when moist, hard or horny when dry, smooth, even ; asei 

 clavate, spores 8, continuous, hyaline; paraphyses present; 

 hypothecium colourless. 



Agyrium, Fries, Syst. Myc, ii. p. 231 ; Sacc, Syll., vol. viii. 

 p. 634; Eehm, Kiypt.-Flor., Discom., p. 450; Leighton, 

 Lich.-Flora of Gt. Brit., p. 392 ; Cke., Hdbk., p. 733. 



The present genus is placed by Eehm in the Bulgariaceae, 

 on account of being more or less gelatinous when moist. 

 Leighton and some other lichenologists consider it as being 

 a lichen, probably iniiuenced by respect for tradition, as 

 there is no trace of a thallus, hence gonidia, the one and 

 only distinctive feature of lichee-fungi, are entirely absent. 



Agyrium rufum. Fries, Syst. Myc, ii. p. 231 ; Sacc, 

 Syll., n. 2615; Leight., Lich.-Flora, p. 392; Cke., Hdbk., 

 p. 733. (figs. 34, 35, p. 12.) 



Ascophore roundish or elongated, ^-1 mm. long, erumpent, 

 sessile ; very convex, almost hemispherical, rather gelatinous, 

 and reddish-brown when moist, becoming more or less 

 collapsed at the centre and horny when dry, excipulum 

 obsolete ; asci clavate ; spores 8, biseriate, elliptical, hyaline, 

 continuous, smooth, usually 1-guttulate, 10-15 x 6-8 /x; 

 paraphyses branched, septate, apices slightly thickened and 

 brown, agglutinated together, a little longer than the asci ; 

 hypothecium colourless. 



On old weathered wood. 



Eesembling some minute Tuhercularia in habit. Smooth, 

 even, often surrounded at the base by a narrow white zone. 



Var. pallens, Fries, I.e., p. 232 ; convex and pallid when 

 moist, yellowish when dry; often stated on a whitish spot. 



Specimen in Fries' " Scleromycetes Succiae," Exsicc, 

 n. 280, examined. 



