Synopsis of Some Genera of the Large Pyrenomycetes | Page 5

Camillea Sagraena and C. poculiformis, with two divisions of the
gleba, a fertile and a sterile portion, and Camillea Bomba and C.
globosa (?) with homogenous gleba. The species Camillea Sagraena
differs from the other in having the fertile portion composed largely of
spores (scanty in others) and in having part of the sterile portion of
uncolored hyphae. Of course, it will form a "genus." Thus the genus
Camillea can be easily divided into five "genera" and we make the
suggestion for the benefit of those engaged in breaking up the old
genera, and proposing new names to which to add their own. Who will
rise to the occasion?
* * * * *

THE GENUS THAMNOMYCES.
This is included in Saccardo as part of Xylaria, but we feel is well
entitled to generic rank. It was proposed by Ehrenberg in 1820 for a
curious species collected in Brazil. The genus differs from Xylaria in
having the fruiting bodies on the ends of branches, which in one
species are dichotomous, or in the other two species sessile or
subsessile and borne on a slender rhachis. There are conflicting
accounts of the structure of these bodies. The original, by Ehrenberg,
represents them as hollow bodies, with the perithecia imbedded in the
walls. That also is as shown by Cooke and is the usual idea. Moeller,
on the contrary, represents each body as a perithecium, and our
examination confirms Moeller's view. If Moeller's account is true, as it
seems to be, it is a strong reason why Thamnomyces should not be
classed with Xylaria.
The usual Xylaria has a white, sterile, central portion known as the
stroma, bearing a carbonous crust. The perithecia are generally
imbedded in the outer portion of the stroma, the mouths opening
through the carbonous crust. The walls of the perithecia are carbonous,
and confluent with the crust. The genus Thamnomyces has a slender

stem, entirely carbonous. This seems to have been the main difference
between it and Xylaria in the old classification, but the character is
fallacious.
There are Species of Xylaria that have no white stroma. The stem is
slender and carbonous and bears the carbonous fruit bodies, superficial,
but sessile and globose. Fries proposed for these species, the generic
name Rhizomorpha, which Saccardo united with Thamnomyces as a
section of Xylaria. In my view it is an entirely different idea from
Thamnomyces and should form a section in itself in the genus Xylaria.
There are Several species like Xylaria scopiformis that intimately
connect Rhizomorpha with Xylaria.
We believe the genus Thamnomyces, in the true sense, embraces only
three species as follows:
[Illustration: #Fig. 850.#]
THAMNOMYCES CHAMISSONIS (Fig. 850).--Stem Carbonous,
black, smooth, repeatedly dichotomously branched, the ultimate
branches bearing ovate, acute fruiting bodies. Structure of these bodies
shown by Moeller is entirely carbonous, hollow, each forming a single,
carbonous perithecium. Spores shown by different authors as of
different shapes and sizes. In our specimens they are 9 × 20-28 mic.,
dark, and arctuate. They closely resemble the ordinary Xylaria spore.
This was originally named from Brazil by Ehrenberg, who gave a good
illustration of it. It has therefore escaped all synonyms, excepting by
Cooke, who discovered it was a new species and called it
Thamnomyces dendroidea. Hennings also discovered it from Africa,
first as a new variety, then as a new species, Thamnomyces
camerunensis, but of course everything that came to Hennings must be
"new" something. It grows on rotten, hard wood, and does not seem
frequent in our American tropics. In Africa, however, I judge it is more
abundant as numbers of African collections are in the museum at Berlin.
We have only received it once, at nice specimen (Fig. 850) from R. H.
Bunting, Gold Coast, Africa.

[Illustration: #Fig. 851.#]
THAMNOMYCES CHORDALIS (Fig. 851).--Stem long, slender,
several proceeding from a common base, entirely carbonous, black,
smooth. Fruiting bodies (or perithecia?) sessile along the stem, ovate,
with slender apices, black. Spores oblong, arctuate, dark.
This, I believe, is only known from tropical America, but is apparently
not rare as it is recorded a number of times, mostly from Brazil. Fries
named it from French Guiana in 1830 and gave a characteristic
description of it. A co-type with the fruit mostly gone is at Kew. Later
Montagne got it also from French Guiana and gave a good figure and
description under the name Thamnomyces rostratus. He thought it was
different from Fries' species on account of the spores not being globose,
but the "globose" spores of the original description is doubtless an error.
The plants are surely the same. As Montagne's figure is characteristic,
the plant when subsequently found has usually been recorded under his
name. We present in our figure both Montagne's and Fries' type.
[Illustration: #Fig. 852.#]
THAMNOMYCES FUCIFORMIS (Fig. 852).--In general appearance,
this is