Sporangia scattered or crowded, stipitate, spheroidal, naked, black fuscous, above, shining, adorned with a minute, black papilla; stipe black, opaque, conical or attenuate upward, about equal to the peridium; columella at the apex expanded into a shining disk; capillitium springing from the lower side of the disk or from its edge, made up of scarcely forked threads which are free below; spores violaceous or fuscous black, minutely warted, 10–12 µ.
Rare. Wisconsin, Ohio, South Carolina, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Colorado.
This is one of the few species so well marked that Persoon's description, l. c., is definitive: "Stylidio toto penetrante. Capillitium exacte globosum, sub-compactum, in eius apice stylidium papillæ in modum prominet." For this reason Bowman's specific name elegans is discarded.
2. Enerthenema berkeleyanum Rost.
- 1876. Enerthenema berkeleyanum Rost., Mon. App., p. 29.
- 1913. Enerthenema syncarpon Sturgis, Myxo. Col., II., p. 448.
This species corresponds to the preceding in all respects except in the fact that the spores are clustered in groups of four to twelve and are a little larger, 11–13 µ, strongly spinulose on the exposed surface.
Dr. Sturgis reports this from Colorado, l. c., but discards Rostafinski's specific name on the ground that the type has disappeared; only the spores of some fungus hyphæ remain in the place and these may have been mistaken by Berkeley. This seems hardly possible since such supposition would not account for the generic reference either by Berkeley (and Broome) or by Rostafinski. The description in the Monograph is minute as that of one who had the form under his lenses. Rostafinski saw Berkeley's specimens.
For a similar case, see under Prototrichia metallica, Mycetozoa 2nd ed., p. 261.
South Carolina, type; Colorado.
2. Clastoderma Blytt