C. L. Shear

Life-History of an Undescribed Ascomycete isolated from a Granular Mycetoma of Man.

In March I92I we received from Dr. Mark F. Boyd of the Medical Department of the University of Texas, Galveston, Texas, cultures of a fungus showing perithecia and conidia for identification. This fungus was isolated from a lesion in a diseased ankle of a negro in Texas. The clinical history of this case with a general description of the organism has recently been published by Doctors Boyd and Crutchfield.1 In brief the history of the case and of the organism is as follows: Some twelve years ago the patient while barefooted ran a thorn into the sole of his foot. The thorn was removed and the wound apparently healed. About three months later the ankle began to

Botryosphaeria and Physalospora in the Eastern United States

Botryosphaeria Ribis is here reported from seventeen host species and Physalospora malorum from twenty-two host species in the eastern United States.Pycnospores have been produced in pure cultures ...

Botryosphaeria and Physalospora in the Hawaiian Islands.

The collection of Hawaiian fungi, of which the material discussed in this paper forms a part, was made by the writers during the winter of 1927-1928. The work was financed chiefly by the United States Department of Agriculture; assistance was also given by the Pan Pacific Research Council. We were aided in our work in one way or another by representatives of every scien? tific institution in the Islands, indeed, by almost every botanist. It would be a pleasure to acknowledge the assistance thus rendered by mentioning each of these friends, but the list would be a long one and could be more conveniently obtained by referring to a list of the members of the Botanical Society of Hawaii. Several years will, of course, be needed for working up the large quantity of fungi collected, even though many specimens have been referred to various specialists. It consequently seems wise to publish parts of the work as completed and to summarize with a final list.

The Life Histories of Botryosphaeria Melanops and Massaria Platani

Among the specimens sent into the Washington laboratory of the Division of Forest Pathology for identification, there are occasional fungi of more than ordinary interest, either because of their scarcity or because, in the course of the work incidental to their identification, some new information is secured regarding them. These criteria apply to specimens of the two fungi with which this paper is concerned.

Life Histories of Tryblidiella Species

The genus Tryblidiella was described by Saccardo (7) to include a group of Discomycetes having brown spores with two or more septa. This genus has been referred by some authors to the Hysteriaceae, but the plants are quite different in structure from typical members of that group. The species have rather large, thick, coriaceous apothecia which when fresh and moist are distinctly discoid, but when dry the margins of the apothecia roll inward covering most of the disk and giving the plants a superficial hysteroid appearance (fig. 1, a and b). The species of Saccardo were included by Ellis and Everhart (3) and some other authors under Tryblidium. The name, Tryblidium, as originally used by Rebentisch, 1805 (5), had as its type T. calyciforme, Rebent., which has hyaline muriform spores, and more or less regular apothecia with the margin irregularly torn. Later, Dufour, 1828 (2), referred to this genus a new species, Try? blidium hysterinum, which is quite difTerent from Rebentischs type, and belongs to an entirely difTerent genus. Saccardo (8), however, in using the name, Tryblidium, took as the type Dufours species which has one-septate brown spores, differing in this respect only from the genus Tryblidiella, which has two or more septate brown spores. Rehm has quite properly applied the name, Tryblidium, to the original type of Rebentisch, and in? cluded the one-septate spored species under Tryblidiella, which seems to be a natural arrangement. Rehm (6) published a revision of this and related genera in 1904, dividing the genus into two sections, Eutryblidiella, with spores one-septate, and Rhydithysterium, with spores three to five-septate. No studies of the life history of this genus have heretofore been made so far as we know, nor any suggestion as to the existence of a pycnidial form. This is perhaps in part due to the fact that no pycnidia are usually found associated with apothecia of 274

Mycological Notes. VI

It is evident that this description is insufficient for the identification of the plant. One can not be sure whether it is an ascogenious or imperfect form. The application of the name, if it is to be retained, must be determined by type or authentic specimens or its application by subsequent authors. We found 3 specimens so labelled in Persoons Herbarium at Leiden. All have a question mark. We have hiad opportunity to examine only one of these microscopically. This was collected by Chaillet in Switzerland and agrees very well with Persoons description. Microscopic study shows it to be a species of Camarosporiumn, having spores 21 30 X 12 16,~L, agreeing well with C. sarmenticium Sacc. Fries (Syst. Myc. 2: 539. 1823) transferred what he supposed to be Persoons species to Sphaeronema with the following description :

Phoma: A Sample of Mycological Nomenclature and Classification

When asked by our hon-botanical friends why we use jawbreaking Latin names for plants instead of the common ones with which they are familiar and which seem to them much simpler and more appropriate, we are wont to explain in a very learned and impressive manner that the common names are local and lack precision, the same vernacular name being applied to different plants in different places, and that they would not be understood by foreigners or botanists in other localities. Latin, however, is the universal language of systematic biology, understood and used by botanists of all nations, and when a Latin binomial name is written

A new species of Dothiora on Aspen and Willow.

Ascocarps innate-erumpent, depressed-pulvinate, circular or irregular in outline, densely gregarious, smooth, black; locules single or occasionally several, thick lenticular, astomous (FIG. 1, A, B); asci polysporous (24 or more spores), cylindric-clavate, short stipitate, 90-115 X 12-15 u, aparaphysate; spores when mature muriform with 3 transverse septa and frequently 1 or rarely 2 longitudinal septa in the upper cells, clavate, constricted in the middle, upper half broader, hyaline, 15-18 X 5-6 x. Conidia in culture hyaline, 1-celled, 8-15 X 4-6 e in size, borne on the mycelium as in Dematium; pycnidia in culture on sterilized willow twigs resemble those of the genus Dothichiza Lib., producing hyaline, 1-celled spores, 6-10 X 3-5 /u in size.

Mycological Notes. III

187. conferta; Sz. S. simplex aggregata globosa truncata subinculoque repento radiatofibroso aterrimis. In cortice Lauri Benzoin emortuo leviter innascens. Subiculum e filis crassiusculis, stellatim in cortice repentibus; ubi sparsa occurrit sphaeria, eleganter centrum filorum occupat. Sphaeriae confertae, truncatae, disco impresso, demum collapso, ut in Sph. cupulari. Ostiolum minutum, deciduum. Sphaerulae granulosae.

Conserving Names of Fungi

Having just had an opportunity to peruse Dr. Donks article (4) on the conservation of generic names, I am moved to make a few remarks on what may be considered an already threadbare subject. However, as long as a few curious people, even in time of war, persist in pursuing and naming the lowly fungi and cannot seem to agree on any simple and rational method of choosing their names, perhaps further discussion may be justified. In recent years considerable progress has been made by international botanists toward the stabilization of generic and specific names. The type method of fixing such names has been generally adopted and also the conservation of our common and well known generic names. The conservation of specific names seems equally desirable. It is being urged by some of our English colleagues and we hope it may be provided for in the next revision of the code. It has taken much time and effort to get these principles accepted. Our chief problem now is to find some more practical plan for selecting and typifying generic names. Many of us have apparently become so attached to the priority plan that it is difficult to give it up even in special cases. Before it was agreed to make exceptions to the almost sacred law of priority we could not agree on a starting point, and so long as we make priority the major principle in the choice of names, and in addition fix various dates for the starting points of various groups of fungi, we cannot hope to reach any great degree of uniformity or stability in the choice and application of names, even after a great amount of bibliographic and herbarium work under the most favorable library and herbarium facilities, has been carried out. That priority with its multiple starting points is the cause of much confusion and waste of time and effort in reaching any satisfactory conclusion by the present plan is most forcibly and convincingly illustrated by Dr. Donks discussion of Corticium (4, p. 164-7) as well as other generic names. Persoon (9), who first used the 267