IN TOUCH WITH NATURE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19218, 8 July 1924, Page 2

IN TOUCH WITH NATURE

FUNGI-COLLKGTORS IN WESTLAND. By J Dnxruuoxv, F.L.S., F.Z.3. A few individuals of the most beaoitiful fungus in Now Zealand were found by Mr J. B. Armstrong, accompanied by Mr J. Mitchell, whoa collecting fungi recently in forests some 14 nuies inland from Hokitika. The whole of this little fungus, about two inches hign, stem, cap, and gills, is an azure blue. The delicate colour of those Westland specimens was set off by bright green hypnum moss in which they grow under beech trees Mr Armstrong states that this lovely fungus, Hydrophorus cyaneus—the blight blue water-carrier—has such a watery, melting texture that it cannot he preserved in anything like its original form, and that dried specimens almost are useless for study, lie is puzzled to discover Nature s aim in giving this fungus blue for its colour, but ho states that, probably, it is associated with the distribution of the spores by insects or by birds that avo largely on the ground, such as the ground wrens and the mottled crows. Also conspicuous in bright green moss in which it grew, was a tiny crimson-capped mushroom, with red gills, a- member of the genus Marasmius, the dry-gill mushrooms, to which the famous edible champignon, Marasmius oreades, belongs.

In the Grey Yalley, 'Messrs Armstrong and Mitchell found, almost covering a dying tree, the Jew’s ear fungus, flirneola auricuJa-judaai. Writing of the plant, Mr Armstrong states; “It is about two inches broad, greyish fawn in colour, and soft in texture when fresh, but in drying becomes bard and black. It is strangely rare in New Zealand, as in England, but is common and widely distributed in other parts of the world.” A fungoid enemy of the flax was seen in Splueria Lindsayi, common on decaying leaves of old flax bushes. Fine threads of spawn, running through the tissue of a loaf, kill it. When the leaf is dead, or almost dead, thousands of thickly crowded small black fruiting' bodies burst through the cuticle, and, later, discharge their spores, which, being blown about by the wind, enter the tissues of young loaves through the stomata, or breathing-pores. Another fungus, found on the stem of an akeakc, or alearia, had formed a large hoofshaped mass, one foot wide, very hard, blackish or dark brown above, with darker zones, and white or pale brown beneath. It had many pores. These are the mouths of slender tubes, which contain reproductive bodies. When an individual of this fungus is cut across, it is found that the tubes penetrate deeply into the centra! mass. This fungus, Pomes apolauatiis, is found in North America and in many other countries, having a wide distribution. It is a perennial, lives for many years, and every year adds a layer of growth'.

Several individuals of the strange bird’snest fungi were collected. One of them belongs to a species new to this dominion. They are white or brownish, cupshaped, and grow on the ground. At first they are closed. When they are opened they seem to be full of small rounded or flattened bodies, attached to the inside of the cup by clastic cords. The effect is a close resemblance to a bird's nest and eggs. The eggs are the fungus’s fruiting bodies, the sporangia-. They contain many spores, which, when quite ripe, are distributed. The species of bird s nest fungus now to this dominion is Nidula microcarpa. A pretty little, fungus, Cladonia malbuta, found on decaying timber, has a white stem, two inches long, tipped with bright scarlet fruit. One of the most recent discoveries in this field of study in New Zealand is an American fungus, Stereum frnstulosum, allied to the silver blight on fruit trees. Mr Armstrong found it billing the branches of a Solander beech in Westland. It has not been reported previously outside of North America. Describing its habits, Mr Armstrong states that the spawn runs through the outer wood and breaks through the bark in the form of small pustules, covered with hyraenium that contain the spores. Although Mr Armstrong believes that many dead trees in the forests have been killed by this fungus, ho does not think that it is sufficiently plentiful to bo a serious pest. Its presence in New Zealand is interesting as evidence of its wide distribution.

A few weeks ago Mr W. Townson, of Thames, asked if the weight of a puffball lie saw, 51b or 61b is unusual. Mr- Armstrong kindly supplies the following answer; “If. as seems probable, this was a. giant puffball, Calvaria- gigantia. the weight described is not remarkable. I found ono near Christchurch many years ago tliat weighed 161 b. About the same time one was reported from Oamaru that weighed 341 b. English botanical journals record individuals that weighed more than 601 b. Those fungi become much lighter as they grow older, and they should be weighed in the early stages. Mr G. E. Pearson, Dargaville, reports that, some two years ago, several largo puffballs appeared near an Eltham homestead. The largest was at least 18 inches high and five feet in circumference. Seen from a distance, it looked like a sheep lying down. About the month of An gust-, ■ 1898, Mr I). H. M'Kenzie, Stanlev Avenue. Milford, Takapuna, when exploring in forests on Hoerder’s Point, Levuka, Fiji, found a puffball nine feet long, three feet six inches wide, and two feet six inches high. It had grown up under a great mass of the sensitive plant until it was a griddled mass, but it was quite fresh and solid when ho found it and measured it.

Mr A. W. Pickering, Apia, reports that on two occasions he saw shining cuckoos in Samoa. On the evening of April 25 last one flew over a shed into trees at the back of his residence. It went within about 20 feet from where he stood. Tho other, on May 11, was seen on the ground in a clear paddock. A Samoan hoy gave chase, hut it recovered sufficiently to fly into a tree in the bush and so made its escape. Both cuckoos seemed exhausted.

Mount Maunganui, across the harbour from Tauranga, Bay of Plenty, is known to the public as one of New Zealand’s many pleasant summer resorts. It is known to naturalists as one of the richest fields m the dominion for the study of conchology— correctly malacology. Dr C. E. R. Bucknill, a Tauranga resident, who has spent happy hours in that happy hunting-ground, reports that he has found there Venus’s looking-glass, the circularsaw shell, the lemon and purple frillycockle, the, dainty white curlics, tho gorgeous fan-shells, the pretty little cowries, the beautiful roso-petals, the rare lanthom-sl-ells, the lovely butterfly-shells, and some 25 members of the great order of tho chitons, or mail-shells, some quaint, some rare, all interesting. Tho small, delicate, ram’s-horn, the, violet sea-snail, and tho paper nautilus, related to the chambered nautilus, which Oliver Wendell Holmes described exquisitely in his breakfasttable series, land there after makifig their last voyages in the open seas.

In the past three years Dr Buckmill has collected on beaches there some two dozen live toheroas, which are sufficiently plentiful on tho western const of Auckland to provide a unique industry. These molluscs, ho states, require clean sand, free from mud, and at least a foot deep. There is a bank of that diameter about a mile south of Moturiki. hut he is of opinion that tho necessary heaoh formation is not so extensive in tho T’ay of Plenty as to make an effort to farm toheroas thorn worth while. At the same time beaches near Tauranga are rich in edible molluscs, as well as those that appeal by their delicate beauty, or the strangeness of their habits. He lias noted at least 14 edible specie?. Amongst these, the univalves—single shell molluscs —are in the majority. The bivalves, although fewer in species.' are amazingly reproductive. They may he gathered in great quantities on any of tho pipi-banks or the cockle-banks. New Zealand’s natural history literature—it has developed into a library in the past 15 years—will he added to soon by Dr Ruekmili’s work on the dominion's marine shells.