Chapter II: LAMPRODERMA, Rost. Sporangia regular, globose, stipitate; the wall

thin and fragile, rugulose, shining with metallic tints, breaking up irregularly and gradually falling away. Stipe more or less elongated, smooth, brown or black in color, arising from a hypothallus, tapering upward and entering the sporangium as a short columella scarcely reaching the center. Capillitium of numerous threads radiating from the columella, usually forking several times and combined into a net by lateral anastomosing branchlets. Spores globose, brown or violaceous.

Lamproderma is distinguished by the shining metallic tints of the sporangial wall, and by the short columella scarcely reaching half the height of the sporangium.

1. LAMPRODERMA PHYSAROIDES, A. & S. Sporangium globose; the wall with a silvery metallic luster, at length breaking up and falling away. Stipe long, slender, brown or blackish, arising from a small circular hypothallus; columella clavate, obtuse, not reaching the center of the sporangium. Capillitium of brownish-violet threads, arising from the upper part of the columella; these branch repeatedly at a sharp angle, form an intricate network of elongated meshes, terminating at the wall in numerous short free branchlets. Spores globose, minutely warted, bright brown, 12-14 mic. in diameter.

Growing on old wood, moss, etc., New York, _Chas. H. Peck_. Distinguished by the pale silvery sporangial wall and the clear brown spores.

2. LAMPRODERMA ARCYRIONEMA, Rost. Sporangium small, globose; the wall dark bronze, with a silvery sheen when loosened from the spores, soon breaking into scales and falling away. Stipe long and slender, smooth, shining and black, rising from a thin hypothallus; the columella short cylindric, variable in length, but not attaining the center of the sporangium. Capillitium arising by division of the apex of the columella into several primary branches; these immediately separate into numerous slender flexuous brown threads, which unite and form a dense network of small arcuate meshes, the ultimate branchlets not free. Spores globose, even, violaceous, 6-7 mic. in diameter. See plate XI, Fig. 26.

Growing on old wood of Juglans and Carya. Sporangium .3-.5 mm. in diameter, the stipe three or four times as long. The columella is somewhat variable, it sometimes forks or divides immediately on entering the sporangium, at other times it is longer and cylindric, with more slender primary branches. The meshes of the capillitium resemble those of Arcyria, whence the name. This is the _Stemonitis physaroides_, A. & S. var. _suboeneus_ of Lea's Catalogue.

3. LAMPRODERMA VIOLACEUM, Fr. Sporangium depressed-globose, convex above and more or less flattened and umbilicate beneath; the wall shining with steel or violet, blue and purple tints, deciduous. Stipe short, stout, brown or blackish in color, arising from a thin, brown, common hypothallus; columella cylindric, or tapering slightly to an obtuse apex, attaining the center of the sporangium. Capillitium of numerous slender threads, radiating from the upper part of the columella; these threads are brown below, with a variable outer portion colorless; they branch a few times and form an interior network of elongated meshes, outwardly arching and freely anastomosing they give rise to an external network of small irregular meshes, they then attain the wall by innumerable short, simple, or forked free branchlets. Spores globose, minutely spinulose, violaceous, 9-11 mic. in diameter. See plate XI, Fig 27.

Growing on old wood, mosses, etc., late in Autumn. Sporangium .5-.8 mm. in diameter, the stipe about the same length. The capillitium is sometimes most of it colorless and flaccid; sometimes it is all brown and rigid except the minute free extremities.

4. LAMPRODERMA ARCYRIOIDES, Somm. Sporangium globose or ellipsoid, and somewhat elongated; the wall with tints of violet, purple, and blue, deciduous. Stipe usually short, or sometimes nearly obsolete, brown or blackish in color, arising from a strongly-developed hypothallus; the columella cylindric or slightly tapering upward, and obtuse, reaching nearly to the center of the sporangium. Capillitium of numerous pale-brown threads, radiating from the apex of the columella; these fork directly from the base, are bent and flexuous, and are combined into a dense, intricate net, with abundant free extremities. Spores globose, spinulose, violaceous, 13-16 mic. in diameter.

Growing on old leaves, wood, etc. Sporangium .5-.8 mm. in diameter, the stipe variable in length from very short to 1 mm. long or beyond. _Lamproderma columbinum_, Pers. is a doubtful species, the forms of that name being easily distributed between the present species and _L. physaroides_.

5. LAMPRODERMA SCINTILLANS, B. & Br. Sporangium globose; the wall shining with colors of blue, purple, and bronze, deciduous. Stipe long, slender, smooth, and shining, brown or blackish, rising from a thin, brown, common hypothallus; columella cylindric or slightly tapering to the obtuse apex, not reaching the center of the sporangium. Capillitium of numerous brown threads, originating about the apex of the columella; these fork several times, with few anastomosing branchlets, and terminate at the wall in long, free extremities. Spores globose, minutely warted, violaceous, 7-9 mic. in diameter. See Plate XI, Fig. 28.

Growing on old leaves, moss, etc., in early Spring. Sporangium .3-.5 mm. in diameter, the stipe from once to twice as long. This is _Lamproderma irideum_ of Massee's Monograph. I am indebted to Arthur Lister, Esq., of London, for the identification of my specimens with _Stemonitis scintillans_, B. & Br., and with _Lamproderma irideum_, Cke.