226 The Philippine Journal of Science ms 
feathery columns of white hyphae grow up, apparently, from 
the mycelium in the interior of the comb. As these columns 
increase in length the central portions become denser and in 
seven to ten days the separate columns have metamorphosed 
into the Xylaria - like structures. The outermost hyphae remain 
as a tomentose covering while the tips, especially in the larger 
type, are frequently composed of a mass of loose white hyphae. 
The sparse growth of hyphae which covered the comb under- 
goes a similar change and comes to have the appearance of a 
loose black net. 
In two cases combs were placed in earth in brick flower pots, 
the combs being covered by a layer of earth about 2 cm deep. 
In the first case the pot was left uncovered. The structures 
produced were of the larger type and curled around the soil 
without appearing at the surface. In the other case the pot 
was placed under a battery jar. The Xylaria-like structures 
produced were mostly of an intermediate type but there were 
a few threadlike forms about 10 cm in length which were 
covered by a loose layer of conidiophores. The conidiophores 
grew out perpendicular to the axis of the fruit body and ter- 
minated in club-shaped four-lobed heads on which numerous 
rows of spores were borne. The entire head formed a some- 
what flattened spherical structure. The spores were catenulate 
and from 4 to 5 ^ in diameter. These spores are similar to the 
conidiospores ascribed to Xylaria furcata Fr. 9 Similar coni- 
diophores were also produced on some sclerotia grown on agar. 
These sclerotia were obtained by taking a few hyphae from a 
developing sterile form and transferring them to agar in test 
tubes. In a few days these produced other sterile sclerotia 
from 6 to 10 cm in length and from 3 to 7 mm in diameter. 
By transferring hyphae from these to fresh tubes, before the 
sclerotia had turned black, other sclerotia were again produced. 
This process was repeated six times without any apparent dimi- 
nution in the vigor of the growth. As some of these sclerotia 
dried out they became covered by a loose layer of conidiophores 
similar to those previously described. The entire structure of 
these fertile forms agrees quite well with the description which 
Petch gives of the Xylarias grown by him in pots except that 
his stromata were smaller, never being more than 1 cm in length. 
In one jar simple conidiophores were produced on sclerotia 
grown on combs. These formed a dense covering around the 
“Petch, T., Termite fungi: A resume, Ann. Bot. Gard. Peradeniya 5 
(1913) 303-341. 
