North American species of Lactarius / L. R. Hesler, Alexander H. Smith.

Subgenus Plinthogalus

133

"staining the flesh dusky blue violet to plum violet (Ridgway)"
(p. 463). We find a "plum purple" in Ridgway but not plum violet,
and plum violet in the Rep. de Couleurs is a purple-red. Singer (l.c.)
has clarified this situation by simply recording the color change of
this species as he saw it-dark violet-and Smith's observations agree
with this designation. "Dusky blue violet" is a Ridgway color and is a
dark violet. The spores of the type and the Michigan collections
have been compared and found to both have the well-developed system of bands. Burlingham's figures are in error as far as this character
is concerned. Some Michigan collections, however, stained pinkish
lilac at first and overnight the stains became brown. The following
is a description of Smith 84745 from Lupton, Michigan. We regard it
as an intermediate between var. lignyotus and var. nigroviolascens.
A similar variant has been noted in L. fallax.
Material cited.-MAINE: Bigelow 16616 (MASS); MICHIGAN:
Harrison 9068 (MICH); Smith 62952, 63956, 67573a, 67573b, 67670,
77970, 78650, 84736, 84745; N. J. Smith 1402 (MICH); NEW YORK:
Atkinson, on the ground in woods, 23 Jul 1917, no. 24257 (type, CUP).
Lactarius lignyotus var. nigroviolascens
(a color-change variant)
Pileus 5-10 cm broad, plano-depressed, the margin arched, velvety to unpolished to subhygrophanous (and then not velvety), very
dark sepia to bister in age, more or less fuscous at first and drying ~
fuscous, margin crenate plicate. Context thin, pallid, buff colored,
pliant in age; taste mild, odor not distinctive. Latex very scanty, milkwhite, drying brown on the gills, staining injured areas pinkish lilac,
stains becoming brownish overnight.
Lamellae broad, distant, decurrent, pallid becoming ~ ochraceous,
margins pallid.
Stipe 4-10 cm long, 8-16 mm thick, equal, stuffed, surface dry
and concolor with pileus and drying dark drab-gray, staining pinkish
lilac where cut, plicate at apex.
Spore deposit ochraceous. Spores 7.5-9.5 p., exclusive of ornamentation, globose; apiculus oblique, 1.5-2.5 X 1-2,u, conic, hyaline in
Melzer's; plage present but ornamented with a few faint lines and at
end opposite the apiculus some showing a finely ~ reticulate small
area (sub. oil immers.); ornamentation of widely spaced coarse ridges
not united or branched (not forming a reticulum), some isolated
granules and debris also present, prominences 0.8-1.3, high.
Basidia 4-spored, clavate, 50-62 X 9-14,t. Pleurocystidia: macrocystidia none; pseudocystidia rare, filamentose. Cheilocystidia 40-68
(75) X 7-12 t, cylindric, clavate or ~ fusoid, hyaline in KOH (one