240 Massee.—A Monograph of the Geoglosseae. 
GEOGLOSSUM, Persoon. 
Ascophore simple, erect, clavate, entirely black, sometimes with 
a tinge of olive or purple ; ascigerous portion terminal, either gradually 
passing downwards into the stem, or its lower termination more or 
less indicated by a slight constriction. Asci clavate, apex narrowed, 
pore blue with iodine ; spores 8, long and slender, septate, brown, 
arranged in a parallel fascicle in the ascus ; paraphyses present ; black, 
spine-like cystidia are also present in the hymenium of some species. 
Geoglossum, Pers., Obs. Mycol. i, 1 1, 1796 ; emended by Saccardo, 
Consp. Gen. Disc., Bot. Central, xviii, 214, 1884. 
Trichoglossum , Bond., Bull. Soc. Myc. Fr. i, no, 1885, in part. 
Cibalocoryne , Hazsl., Ung. Akad. d. Wiss. xi, 8, 1881, in part. 
Clavaria , of old authors. 
Most nearly allied to Mitrula , the black species of which differ 
in the hyaline, 2-seriate spores. Certain species of Clavaria , belong- 
ing to the Basidiomycetes, and Xylaria, belonging to the Pyreno- 
mycetes, closely resemble the species of Geoglossum in general 
appearance and habit. 
Distr. — The seven species included in the present genus have both 
individually and collectively a much wider range than those belonging 
to any other genus in the Geoglosseae. Six of the species — G. hirsu- 
tum , g lab rum, glutinosum , Peckianum, viscosulum , and Heuflerianum — 
occur in Europe, the two last-named not occurring elsewhere. 
G. pumilum is peculiar to Brazil. The genus ranges from Franz 
Josef Archipelago to New Zealand, and is more frequent in warm 
regions than other genera; species being recorded from Cuba, 
Bermuda, Brazil, Java, and Sikkim. No species, so far as I am 
aware, have been found in China or Japan. 
Key to the Species. 
I. Spines present in the hymenium . 
hirsutum. 
II. Spines absent from the hymenium . 
glutinosum. Plant 3-6 cm. high ; spores almost cylin- 
drical ; paraphyses abruptly piriform or globose at the tips. 
