NOTES ON NEW OR RARE SPECIES OF 

 GASTEROMYCETES 



W. H. Long 



For several years the writer has had in his herbarium three 

 species of Gasteromycetes, collected in Texas, two of which are 

 undescribed. Lack of time has prevented an earlier discussion of 

 them. 



Geasteroides gen. nov. 



Peridium double ; exoperidium splitting into starlike, reflexed, 

 persistent segments ; endoperidium more or less deciduous, 

 fragile, upper half usually splitting into fragments which cling to 

 inner surface of exoperidium when it expands, basal portion of 

 endoperidium persistent and attached to a corky sterile base, 

 mouth single, columella and capillitium present. 



Geasteroides texensis sp. nov. 



Exoperidium thick, rigid, coriaceous, subhygrometric, outer 

 surface ocher-colored to whitish in old specimens, often with an 

 outer thin layer of arachnoid mycelium and dirt that peels off as 

 the plants mature, 4-10 cm. in diameter when expanded, splitting 

 into 7-10 unequal and strongly recurved segments with incurved 

 tips, segments about one half as long as entire exoperidium, con- 

 vex above and concave beneath when fully expanded, inner sur- 

 face of exoperidium dark brown, fissured and cracked when 

 dried ; endoperidium seated on a short subligneous stipe which 

 broadens out into a top-shaped, persistent, corky, sterile base, top- 

 shaped base including stipe and gleba 1-3 cm. tall by 1-3 cm. 

 broad, endoperidium whitish to brownish, very fragile, appar- 

 ently with a poorly defined mouth, upper part of endoperidium 

 breaking away either when the exoperidium opens or soon there- 

 after, leaving the prominent sterile base crowned with the sub- 

 globose columella and spores attached to the convex center of 

 the exoperidium, cells of sterile base next to stipe very small and 

 whitish; mature gleba dark purplish-brown, in very old weath- 

 ered specimens entirely disappearing and leaving only the sterile 

 top-shaped base seated on the stipe, or sometimes the sterile base 



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