A well-marked genus, by reason of the peculiar origin of the capillitium.
1. Enerthenema papillatum, Pers. Sporangium globose, stipitate; the wall brown or blackish, soon disappearing. Stipe black, rugulose, thick below, tapering above into the slender columella, which, at its apex, expands into a thin membranaceous disk. Capillitium of long brown threads suspended from the apical disk, the threads branched a few times, occasionally anastomosing by a short, transverse branchlet, the free ends often forked. Spores globose, very minutely warted, violaceous, 10–12 mic. in diameter. [See Plate XI, Fig. 35.]
Growing on old wood. Stipe and columella .8–1.2 mm. in height. The species seems to be rare in this country, as I have met with it but once myself, and have received only a few specimens from elsewhere.
VI. DIACHÆA, Fr. Sporangia globose to oblong, stipitate, arising from a common hypothallus; the wall thin, rugulose, iridescent with metallic tints, breaking up irregularly and gradually falling away. Stipe and columella thick, erect, rigid, tapering upward, filled with minute, roundish granules of lime, white or yellowish in color. Capillitium arising from numerous points of the columella, the threads repeatedly branching and anastomosing to form an intricate network, attaining the wall by numerous short free extremities. Spores globose, violaceous.
This genus is scarcely to be distinguished from Lamproderma, except by the white mass of lime which fills the tube of the stipe and columella.
1. Diachæa leucopoda, Bull. Sporangia ovoid-oblong to short cylindric, the base obtuse or slightly umbilicate, the apex more rounded; the wall with bronze, blue, purple, and violet tints, gradually falling away. Stipe short, thick, white, arising from a white, venulose, hypothallus, tapering upward; the columella cylindric or slightly tapering, obtuse, terminating below the apex of the sporangium. Capillitium of slender, flexuous brown threads forming a dense network of rather small meshes. Spores globose, very minutely warted, violaceous, 7–9 mic. in diameter.
Growing on old leaves, sticks, etc., and sometimes running over living plants. Sporangium with the stipe 1–2 mm. in height, the stipe usually much shorter than the sporangium, the latter .4-.5 mm. in thickness. Diachæa elegans, Fr.
2. Diachæa splendens, Peck. Sporangia globose, sometimes a little depressed, with the base umbilicate; the wall steel-blue with tints of purple and violet, quite persistent, rupturing irregularly. Stipe short, thick, white, arising from a white, reticulate hypothallus, tapering upward; the columella oblong or short cylindric, extending beyond the center of the sporangium. Capillitium of slender, brown threads, which branch several times and form a loose network of rather large meshes. Spores subglobose, with very large warts, dark violet, 8–10 mic. in diameter.
Growing on old leaves and twigs. Sporangium .4-.6 mm. in diameter, the stipe about the same length. This is a beautiful species.
3. Diachæa Thomasii, Rex. Sporangia globose, or sometimes a little depressed; the wall gold-bronze, with tints of purple and blue, subpersistent, rupturing irregularly. Stipe thick, dull ochre-yellow in color, variable in length, usually very short and sometimes quite obsolete, arising from an ochre-yellow hypothallus; the columella varying from bluntly-conical to cylindric-clavate, attaining the center of the sporangium. Capillitium of slender, brown threads, radiating from all points of the columella, branching several times and forming a loose network of elongated meshes. Spores globose, minutely warted, violaceous, 11–12 mic. in diameter. [See Plate XI, Fig. 36.]