THALLUS 215-250 µm long, yellow-brownish in a greater part, with a blackened foot (f).

RECEPTACLE (r) 145-156 µm long, up to 120 µm wide, composed of a hyaline, short basal cell (receptacle stalk cell I, rscI) and three tiers of cells.

Lower tier (lt) of cells narrow, blackened except for the upper part of the middle cell, at first composed of three elongated cells, later the lateral cells are subdivided.

Median tier (mt) usually consists of five, well visible elongated cells and some lateral ones, which subdivide giving rise to blackish strips (bs) continuous with the lower blackenings and laterally surrounding the upper part of receptacle; sometimes only short and slightly darkened lateral outgrowths are formed.

Upper tier (ut) is distally concave and consists of 12-25 elongated cells.

ANTHERIDIA (a) brownish, up to 28 µm long.

APPENDAGES (app) up to 56 µm long.

PERITHECIA (p) two to four in a thallus, 80-100 x 21-25 µm, with a broad apex (ap) having two arcuate auricles, up to 5 µm long.

SPORES (s) hyaline, 30-33 x 2.5 µm.

HOST AND DISTRIBUTION. The specimens of P. vulgata characterized here come from Spatulongus longicornis (Staphylinidae).

In Poland, P. vulgata has for the first time been found in the Bialowieza National Park (52°42'N, 23°52'E; Majewski 1999). The fungus is known from many countries of Asia, Europe, Africa, as well as from Australia and both Americas (Majewski 1999).

NOTES. According to Majewski (1999), P. vulgata is a very variable species and may easily be confused with P. biformis (Thaxt.) I. Tavares and P. furcifera (Thaxt.) I. Tavares, species also occurring in Poland (Majewski 1994).

REFERENCES

Majewski T. 1994. The Laboulbeniales of Poland. Polish Bot. Stud. 7, 3-466.

Majewski T. 1999. New and rare Laboulbeniales (Ascomycetes) from the Bialowieza Forest (NE Poland). Acta Mycol. 349(1), 7-39.