|
 Badhamia apiculospora
SynonymsBadhamia semiannulata
Physarum apiculosporum
BiostatusPresent in region - Indigenous. Non endemic
Article: Stephenson, S.L. (2003). Myxomycetes of New Zealand. Fungi of New Zealand. Ngā Harore o Aotearoa 3: xiv + 238 p. Hong Kong: Fungal Diversity Press.
Description: Fruiting body a sessile sporangium (or sometimes forming short plasmodiocarps), crowded, 0.2–0.5 mm in diameter, globose to subglobose, white, off-white or grey. Hypothallus inconspicuous. Peridium consisting of two layers, the outer layer heavily encrusted with lime, nearly smooth to rugose, inner layer membranous. Capillitium dense, irregular network of calcareous tubules, sometimes massed at the center of the sporotheca to form a pseudocolumella. Spores black in mass, pale violaceous brown by transmitted light, ovoid to ellipsoidal, smooth but with a prominent longitudinal ridge, 10–6 by 9–12 µm in diameter. Plasmodium white or cream coloured.
Habitat: Decaying leaves, old straw, and the dung of herbivorous animals
Distribution: Reported from Europe and North America but apparently uncommon (Martin & Alexopoulos 1969). First reported from New Zealand by Mitchell (1992), based on specimen from Wellington.
Notes: The spores of Badhamia apiculospora are distinctive. Few other species of myxomycetes have smooth spores, and the longitudinal ridge that extends around only one half of the spore is unique for the group
|