Sporangia gregarious or sometimes closely crowded, globose, obovoid, or irregularly globoid, yellowish or ochraceous, shining, sessile, or with a short black stipe; hypothallus none; capillitium of rather long, simple, or more rarely branched elaters, 4–5 µ, wide, marked by irregular spirals generally only two, prominent and narrow and in places remote, the apices acute, about twice the elater diameter; spore-mass yellow, spores by transmitted light dull yellow, 12–14 µ, delicately verruculose, guttulate.
A very common species, very variable in form, stipitate forms occuring anon beside those which are irregular and sessile. According to Rostafinski the stipitate phase constitutes the T. nigripes of Persoon and other authors. The capillitium is, however, characteristic throughout. The two spiral bands wind loosely and irregularly and present an elater unlike anything else in the group except the same structure in T. contorta, but here the elater is narrow and the sculpture obscure. Since the specific distinctions are purely microscopic, the synonymy beyond Rostafinski is mainly conjectural. It is possible that Fries properly applied the name.
Common. Maine to Oregon and California, and south to Arkansas and Alabama.
5. Trichia scabra Rost.
[Plate IV.], Figs. 4, 4 a, 4 b.
- 1875. Trichia scabra Rost., Mon., p. 258.
Sporangia closely crowded upon a well-developed hypothallus, regular, globose or turbinate-globose, orange or golden brown, smooth, shining; capillitial mass clear, golden yellow, or sometimes rusty orange, the elaters simple, long, 4–5 µ in width, the spirals three or four, closely wound, spinulose, even and regular, the apices short, acuminate; spore-mass concolorous, under the lens spores yellow, covered by a delicate fine-meshed network, or simply spinulose under low power, 10–12 µ.
Generally a well-marked species, easily recognized by its regular but roughened capillitial threads. Under a 1–12 objective the spores are also diagnostic. To the unaided eye it resembles the next species in both color and habit. Fructifications two inches or more in length and half as wide are not infrequent on the lower side of fallen stems in forests of deciduous trees. The plasmodium is white.
Not uncommon. Maine to Washington, Oregon, Alaska, and south to Missouri and Arkansas.
6. Trichia persimilis Karst.