Leptospermum ericoides A.Rich. Auckland: Piha, December 1941, J.M.Dingley; Whangarei Heads, October 1947, J.M.Dingley; North-east King Island, Three Kings, December 1955, P.J.Brook. Wellington: Lake Papaetonga, 50ft, August 1956, G.H.C., type collection, P.D.D. herbarium, No. 16535.Leptospermum scoparium Forst.f. Auckland: Titirangi, 600ft, February 1931, M.Hodgkins; same locality, coast, September 1956, S.D. Brook; Cutty Grass Road, Waitakeres, 900ft, August 1956, J.M.Dingley. Leucopogon fasciculatus (Forst.f.) A.Rich. Auckland: Parahaki, Whangarei, 700ft, June 1948, J.M.Dingley; White's Stream, Piha, January 1954, J.M.Dingley.

Hymenophore annual, coriaceous, brittle, pileate or resupinate; pilei consisting of numerous orbicular, patelliform colonies with broad resupinate base and narrow reflexed margins, some arranged in linear areas to 15 cm long, or sessile-umbonate with free margins, 2-25 mm diameter, reflexed portions to 5 mm broad, surface radiately sulcate or even, with narrow radiate bands of chestnut and umber brief hairs, soon glabrous. Hymenial surface at first umber or date-brown, soon chocolate, irregularly tuberculate, at length deeply creviced in the central area; margin thinning out, lobed, fulvous, to 1 mm wide. Context pallid ferruginous, 130-200 µ thick, of parallel hyphae radiately arranged and embedding masses of crystals beneath the setal layer, cortext of parallel cemented hyphae, reddish-brown; hyphal system dimitic; skeletal hyphae 3-3.5 µ diameter, walls 0.5 µ thick, golden yellow, scantily branched, septate, tending to collapse; generative hyphae 2-2.5 µ diameter, walls 0.2 µ thick, hyaline, branched, septate. Setal layer 60-90 µ deep, composed of 3-5 rows of overlapping setae, densely compacted, arising from the subhymenium and a deeply coloured zone of intertwined hyphae lying below it; setae projecting to 25 µ, subulate with acuminate apices, often bent at the base, 30-56 x 5-7 µ, walls naked, reddish-brown, lumina narrow. Hymenial layer to 30 µ deep, a dense palisade of basidia and paraphyses. Basidia subclavate, 10-12 x 3.5-4 µ, 4-spored; sterigmata arcuate, slender, to 4 µ long. Paraphyses subclavate, of the same diameter but shorter than the basidia. Spores obovate, 2.5-3 x 1.5-2 µ, walls smooth, hyaline, 0.1 µ thick.

DISTRIBUTION: New Zealand.

HABITAT: On bark of dead branches associated with a coarse pocket rot.

Pileata, annua, coriacea, fragilis. Pilei umbonati, sessiles vel patelliformes; superficie castanea vel umbrina, concentraliter pilosa, deinde glabra; margine lobato, castaneo. Superficies hymenii umbrina vel spadicea, deinde badia, in medio rimosa, tuberculata; margine lobato, fulvo. Contextus hypharum hymenio parallelarum, pallide ferrugineus; cortext adest. Hypharum systema dimiticum. Setarum stratum 3-5 ordinibus, subulatis, nudis, 30-56 x 5-7 µ, partim superimpositis, ad 25 µ eminentibus. Basidia subclavata, 10-12 x 3.5-4 µ, 4 sporis obovatis, 2.5-3 x 1.5-2 µ.

Readily recognized by the colour and shape of pilei, colliculose or tuberculate surface, thin brittle context with the cortex composed of cemented parallel hyphae, small setae, basidia, and minute spores.
Pilei at first are orbicular and patelliform or umbonate-sessile with free plane margins. They may remain thus or margins become reflexed to form narrow pilei with the surface scantily clothed in short hairs. Later, colonies may merge to form linear areas which may attain a length of 15 cm. At first the hymenial surface is date-brown and finely colliculose; soon it changes to a rich chocolate with bright fulvous margins. Finally specimens become almost black with concolorous margins. Crevices at first appear near the centre, but as plants age extend until fructifications become coarsely segmented. The context is firm though brittle, and contains masses of crystals. Setae are small and crowded into a setal layer the thickness of which increases from periphery to centre. Setae are frequently bent at an angle and occasionally may be found embedded in the context. Spores are the smallest seen in species of the genus.

Wellington: Lake Papaetonga, 50ft, August 1956, G.H.C., type collection, P.D.D. herbarium, No. 16535