- 23 - 
shaped, or the apices frequently cornute or subulate. Cups well developed 
or abortive, abruptly or gradually dilated, regular or irregular, the cavity 
commonly deep and non-perforate, the margin entire, dentate or proliferate, 
the proliferations one to several and the ranks one to three. Apothecia 
rather rare and medium sized, .8-2 mm. in diameter, solitary and rounded 
or irregularly conglomerate, sessile or pedicellate on the margins of the cups 
or at the cornute or subulate apices, flat and immarginate or more commonly 
becoming convex and immarginate, brown or rarely reddish-brown. Hypo- 
thecium pale or cloudy. Hymenium pale or pale-brownish below and brown- 
ish above. Paraphyses rarely branched, commonly thickened and brownish 
toward the apex. Asci'clavate or cylindrico-clavate. 
Generally distributed over North America and throughout the world in 
one form or another, the varieties being connected by various intermediate 
forms and altogether constituting perhaps the most confusing assemblage of 
lichens known to our flora. 
Cladonia fimbriata (L.) Fr. var. simplex (Weis.) Wainio Mon. Clad. Univ. 
2:356. 1894. Plate III. Fig. 1. 
Podetia erect and straight, scarcely exceeding 3-30 mm. in length, 
scyphiform (i. e. cup-like), the cups well developed, 2-7 mm. in diameter, 
regular or becoming suboblique, with entire or dentate margin. Apothecia 
rare, sessile or pedicellate on the margins of the cups. Confusingly like 
forms of Cladonia pyxidata, but may usually be distinguished by the more 
slender habit, the more sorediate-granulate condition and transitional 
states passing into strictly cylindrical forms of the present species. 
Found on various moist and somewhat shaded soils and more commonly 
on decaying wood. Examined by the writer from Newfoundland, Ontario, 
Minnesota, Iowa, Florida, Colorado and Idaho. Cited by Wainio from such 
widely separate localities as Great Bear Lake and New Mexico and Cali- 
fornia. These localities give the variety a general North American distri- 
bution. Known also in all of the grand divisions. 
Cladonia fimbriata (L.) Fr. var. prolifera (Retz.) Wainio Mon. Clad. Univ. 
2:270. 1894. Plate III. Fig. 2. 
Podetia 20-70 mm. long, scyphiform, repeatedly proliferate from well 
developed cups, commonly straight and erect, wholly decorticate and for 
most part sorediate, or having a minutely areolateor verrucose cortex below, 
sometimes squamulose especially toward the base. Cups 2-10 mm. in diam- 
eter, commonly somewhat abruptly dilated, regular or oblique, prolifera- 
tions one or more from each cup and the ranks two or three or rarely more, 
the upper ranks usually quite as long as the lower and scyphiform, but the 
terminal cups commonly narrowed. Apothecia rare and usually borne on 
the cups of the highest rank. Readily distinguished from the last by the 
proliferous habit. 
Occurring on damp earth and more rarely on mossy rocks and decaying 
trunks of trees. Seen by the writer from Newfoundland and from northern 
Minnesota. Also cited by Wainio from Vancouver Island. Supposed to be 
