Pilei annual, scattered, membranous, tough, cupulate, 1-2.5 mm. diameter, attached by a narrow base; exterior bay-brown, tan, or ferruginous, concolorous, finely radiate-striate, often splitting on the posterior side, not tomentose though sometimes with a few scattered hairs; margin acute, slightly inturned, entire or with one or two deep incisions; hymenial surface concave, even, pallid cream. Context white, save at the periphery, where a few hyphae are tinted, to 80 µ thick, base to 350 µ, of radiately arranged densely packed sclerotioid hyphae; generative hyphae to 5 µ diameter, wall to 2 µ thick, branched, septate, hyaline. Hymenial layer to 40 µ deep, paraphyses subclavate. Basidia subclavate, 35-42 x 10-12 µ, 4-spored. Spores elliptic-fusiform, a few suballantoid, bluntly acaminate at ends, 12-13 x 4-5 µ, smooth, hyaline.

DISTRIBUTION. New Zealand.

HABITAT. Solitary on bark of dead twigs.

Pilei sparsi, membranacei, cupulati, 1-2.5 mm. diam.; exteriore parte brunneo-badia, alutacea vel ferrnginea, in radiis tenuiter striata, nuda; margine acuto paulo inflecto, toto aut uno vel duobus profundis incisis. Contextus albus ad 80 µ crassus, hyphis sclerotioidibus ad 5 µ diam. in radiis ordinatis, pariete 2 µ crasso. Paraphyses subclavati. Sporae elliptice, fusiformes aliquot suballantoides, terminis obtuse acuminatis, apiculatae, 12-13 x 4-5 µ, leves, hyalinae.

C. hebe and C. totara show a general resemblance to one another in shape and colour of the naked pilei. In microfeatures they differ in context structure, and shape of the spores. C. densa also possesses pilei with similar colour; but they are of different shape, much smaller, often caespitose at the base, tomentose, and the spores are brown.

Hebe salicifolia (Forst. f.) Ckn. & Allan. Taranaki. Mt. Egmont, 4,000 feet; April, 1946; J.M. Dingley; type collection.

SCROPHULARIACEAE. Hebe salicifolia: Taranaki, Mt. Egmont, 1,350 m, type collection, P.D.D. herbarium, No. 11167.

Pilei annual, scattered, membranous-coriaceous, cupulate, 1-2.5 mm diameter, attached by narrow bases; exterior bay, tan, or ferruginous, finely radiately striate, often splitting on the posterior side, usually naked, rarely with a few scattered hairs; margin acute, slightly inturned, entire or with one or two deep incisions; hymenial surface concave, even, pallid cream. Context white, save for a few tinted hyphae near the periphery, to 80 µ thick, of radiately arranged densely compacted parallel hyphae; generative hyphae 4-5 µ diameter, walls to 2 µ thick, hyaline. Hymenial layer to 40 µ deep, a close palisade of basidia and paraphyses. Basidia subclavate, 35-42 x 10-12 µ, bearing 4 spores, sterigmata arcuate, slender, to 6 µ long. Paraphyses subclavate, 28-36 x 6-8 µ. Spores elliptic-fusiform, a few suballantoid, ends bluntly acuminate, apiculate, 12-13 x 4-5 µ, walls smooth, hyaline, 0.2 µ thick.

TYPE LOCALITY: Mt. Egmont, Taranaki, New Zealand.
DISTRIBUTION: New Zealand.

HABITAT: Scattered on bark of dead twigs.

Lachnella hebe and L. totara resemble one another in shape and colour of the naked pilei. They differ in several microfeatures, mainly in structure of the context and shape of the spores. Exterior walls of occasional pilei appear as if delicately tomentose when examined under a dissecting microscope, an appearance produced by brief ends of occasional context hyphae which project slightly.