manner, as if provided with a stipes. The surface is woolly, or shaggy
with coarse hairs, and impressed with a number o f zones o f various
breadths, and tinged witli different colours, according to circumstances;
b u t the general hue is a yellowish-buff. The margin is entire, thin,
more or less lobed, the lobes roundish. Hymenmm mostly yellowish-
buff, glabrous, even. Asci (little tubes containing tb e sporidia) immersed.
Sporidia solitary (on the authority o f F r ie s ) , white, difficult
to detect.
In his Systema Orbis Veptabilis, M . F r i e s has proposed
to restore the old germs Auricularia of B u l l i a r d , and to retain
under Thelephora only those species which have a somewhat
papillose unequal hymenium. They all grow upon the
ground, and possess brown quaternate sporidia. The great
mass of species will therefore now' come under Auricularia;
which, with its allies, are contained in a suborder of the Pi-
leate fungi, entitled Auricularini. Hymenium papillosum
vel la;ve. The genera are as follow:
Sporidia
Sporidia
T helephora, Ehrh.—Hymenium subpapillosum, inaequabile.
quaternata, fusco-purpurea.
A uricularia, Bull.—Hymenium lasviusculum. Asci immersi.
soUtaria albida.
P hlebia, F n c i.—Hymenium vage vel interrupte plicatum. Asci immersi.
Sporidia solitaria albida. '
Coniophora, De C.—Hymenium líEviuscülum. Asci sub-obliterati. Sporidia
ochracea vel subferruginea copiose inspersa.
S tereom, Hymenium laiviusculum, ascis? segregatis basi immersis,
apicibus emersis.
The two last genera are not yet accurately understood ; and
their characters are consequently not very well marked.
Auricularia reflexa is of extremely common occurrence,
and distinguished by the hairy zoned surface of the reflexed pileus,
and very smooth hymenium. Several varieties are described,
chiefly characterised by their colour, which may be in
part whitish, greyish, reddish, yellow, or brownish.
Figs. I. & 2. Auricularia reflexa, natural size. Fig. 3. A portion o f the pi-
leus. Fig. 4. A portion o f the hymenium. Fig. 5. Asci and sporidia; magnified.
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