DECAYED WOOD. Auckland, Whakarewarewa, 400 m. SOIL IN GLASSHOUSE BOXES. Auckland, Mt. Albert, 50 m.

Hymenophore resupinate, annual, membranous, loosely attached, fragile when dry, forming irregular orbicular or linear areas to 4 x 3 cm; hymenial surface yellow or yellow-olive, ferruginous when dry, at first porose-reticulate with pores 0.5-1.5 mm diameter, becoming gyrose or irpiciform, with folds 1-3 mm tall; margin thinning out, 2-3 mm wide, white or cream, crenate, edges fibrillose. Context white, 100-600 µm thick, intermediate layer of mainly erect hyphae closely compacted and embedding numerous gloeocystidia in the upper parts of folds, basal layer of mainly parallel hyphae with few or many hyaline or coloured cordons 25-40 µm diameter; generative hyphae 4-5 µm diameter, walls 0.1 µm thick, hyaline or yellow in the base, with ring-like clamp connections. Gloeocystidia confined to the upper parts of the folds, freely developed, not projecting, cylindrical or subclavate, 20-55 x 5-8 µm, walls 0.1 µm thick, contents staining deeply. Hymenial layer to 35 µm deep, a close palisade of basidia and paraphyses. Basidia clavate, 22-28 x 8-9 µm, bearing 2-4 spores; sterigmata erect, slender, to 4 µm long. Paraphyses cylindrical, 16-22 x 3-5 µm. Spores oval or broadly elliptical, with rounded ends, apiculate, 5-6.5 x 3.5-4.5 µm, walls smooth, tinted golden yellow, 0.5 µm thick.

DISTRIBUTION: Europe, Great Britain, North America, New Zealand.

HABITAT: Effused on rotten wood, wood debris, and soil.

Specific features are the frequently irpiciform or gyrose folds of the hymenial surface, broad sterile margins of lighter colour, loosely attached fructifications with the abhymenial surface fibrillose with coloured or hyaline cordons, and golden yellow, oval or broadly elliptical spores which possess rather thick walls staining deeply with aniline blue. Cordons are conspicuous and composed of closely compacted hyphae (15-30) with hyaline or yellow walls. Gloeocystidia are usually abundant and confined to folds of the hymenial layer. Of various shapes and sizes, they appear to be inflated portions of context hyphae, some clearly defined. They were noted also in European specimens examined in Kew herbarium. Hyphae of the four collections listed are of lighter colour than those of European specimens examined; but in old plants, or parts thereof, especially of cordons, walls are golden yellow. Spore walls also range in colour from hyaline to golden yellow. The habitat is also noteworthy; for two collections were taken from the surface of soil in boxes in glasshouses, two from rotten wood lying beneath houses.

TYPE LOCALITY: Europe.