NOTES ON AUSTRALIAN FUNGI. 52? 



Section 80. White when fresh, but turning reddish in 

 drying or with reddish spots on the surface. 

 127. Polyporus fragilis Pries. 

 Recorded by Cooke (No. 633) for Victoria. 

 Section 81. White when fresh, turning blue when touched. 



128. Polyporus ccesius Schrader. 

 Polyporus ccesius Fries, Syst. Myc. i, p. 360; Massee, 

 Brit. Fung. Flora, I, p. 252. 



'Pileus sessile, white, turning blue at once when touched, 

 and drying greyish. Flesh soft, white, turning blue when 

 broken. Pores large, sinuate, with uneven edges. Spores 

 \\ x 5ft, rod-shape, straight, hyaline, smooth. This is a 

 frequent plant, usually on pine. It occurs more rarely on 

 frondose wood, and we have collected it on willow. It is 

 common in Europe and America, and recorded in Africa. 

 There should be no trouble in telling Polyporus ccesius, for 

 it is the only species that turns blue when touched. The 

 dried specimens have a greyish-white cast by which they 

 may be recognised.' — Lloyd. 



Plants collected by one of us (J.B.O.) at Mount Wilson 

 in June, are stated by Lloyd to be exactly the same as dried 

 specimens of this species. No note was made at the time 

 as to whether the flesh turned blue on being bruised, though 

 we believe it did. Further specimens, also identified by 

 Lloyd, obtained on logs on the Blue Mountains on the follow- 

 ing June were quite white when gathered. On section 

 the flesh occasionally or in spots turned greyish-green. The 

 tubes slowly turned a bluish-grey-green. The flesh cut 

 soft like a cheese. There was no smell. The spores are 

 not straight, but slightly curved, 4*2 to 5 X 1 to 1*5 AS the 

 spores of typical P. ccesius Lloyd gives as straight. 



Section 82. Context very soft and cottony. 

 No Australian species recorded. 



