FAGACEAE. Nothofagus fusca: Wellington, Tauherenikau Valley, Tararua Ranges, 300 m. Nelson, Murchison, 170 m; Staircase Creek, Reefton, 700 m. Westland, Orwell Creek, Ahaura. LAURACEAE. Beilschmiedia tarairi: Auckland, Waipoua Kauri Forest, 120 m. Beilschmiedia tawa: Auckland, Kauaeranga Valley, Thames, 70 m; Mt. Te Aroha, 500 m, type collection, P.D.D. herbarium, No. 5253; Whakarewarewa State Forest, 600 m; Te Whaiti, 500 m.

Hymenophore perennial, solitary, coriaceous, seldom pileate, commonly resupinate and loosely attached. Pilei merely upturned edges of one margin of broadly resupinate areas, with a radius of 8 mm; when resupinate effused to 16 x 5 cm, commonly 2-4 mm thick (in one specimen to 25 mm), with several outlying islands; pileus surface deep chestnut or umber, finely velutinate, concentrically sulcate; cortex to 200 µm thick, ferruginous, of mainly vertical hyphae compacted and partly cemented and with walls ferruginous; margin (of pilei) bluntly acute, concolorous, crenate (of resupinate specimens), irregular, thinning out, finely tomentose, lifting; hymenial surface white, drying cream or pallid tan, even, or undulating and nodose, each layer receding. Pores in 2-6 layers with context hyphae between, commonly in one or two layers, pallid isabelline, to 4 mm deep in each layer, round or angular, 4-5 per mm, 100-150 µm diameter; dissepiments 50-150 µm thick, occasionally to 500 µm, apices tapering, even, finely velutinate with erect hyphae, ends of which are crystal encrusted. Context 1-2 mm thick, straw or tan, closely intertwined and with coloured mucilage between hyphae; skeletal hyphae to 4 µm diameter, lumena 1-2 µm wide, aseptate, sparsely branched, irregularly waved towards ends, walls staining; generative hyphae to 2.5 µm diameter, walls 0.2 µm thick, somewhat sparingly branched and septate. Hymenial layer to 25 µm deep, a scanty palisade of basidia, paraphyses, paraphysate hyphae, and metuloids. Paraphysate hyphae merely projecting ends of skeletal hyphae, with thin walls encrusted with fine crystals. Metuloids clavate or fusiform, to 25 x 10 µm, walls hyaline or tinted, to 3 µm thick, capped with coarse crystals. Basidia clavate, 12-16 x 3.5-4 µm, bearing 4 spores; sterigmata erect, to 5 µm long. Paraphyses subclavate, 8-12 x 3-3.5 µm. Spores elliptical, apiculate, 9-12 x 4.5-6 µm, walls smooth, hyaline, 0.1 µm thick, soon collapsing.

New Zealand.

Bark or decorticated wood of dead fallen trunks, associated with a white rot.

Most collections are resupinate with one or several receding layers. In two, pilei are present, appearing as scantily developed margins of upper edges of plants growing vertically upon fallen logs. A well developed cortex is present in them, indicating that they are genuine pilei. When fresh the hymenial surface is white, although in some specimens it may be isabelline, changing in drying to some shade of brown. One collection taken from the under side of a fallen log was 1.5 m long, 2.5 cm thick, and composed of six receding layers. When fresh, plants possess a fragrant odour as of ripe peaches. Metuloids are scanty, but readily seen as they project to 10 µm, possess thick and refractive, usually tinted walls, and are capped with coarse crystals. Paraphysate hyphae are also present, both in the hymenial layer and at apices of dissepiments. The species is somewhat difficult to place. Other than for the presence of metuloids, it is a typical Heterobasidion; the presence of metuloids places it under Flaviporus with which it agrees in several features.

LOCALITY: Mt. Te Aroha, Auckland.