Clathraceae

Abstract

The genus Clathrus includes some of the most beautiful fungi, unfortunately the odour of the fruit body is so strong, unpleasant and nauseating that most students of mycology prefer to admire them as preserved specimens in tightly sealed collecting jars. These fungi frequently grow in garden borders and on heaps of leaves, and usually appear when rains follow a warm dry period. The receptacle consists of a more or less spherical network, hollow, sessile and whitish, orange or red in colour. The spore slime may cover the entire inner surface of the receptacle or be restricted to the intersections of the arms of the network. The arms may be tubular, or triangular and show a more or less regular arrangement of chambers, though this arrangement may not be noticed in large and spongy species.