A New Predacious Fungus

SUMMARY

1.	Zoophagus tentaclum has been found growing loosely epiphytic on filaments of Nitella flexilis from Areola, New Jersey, as a predacious parasite of species of Monostyla and Distyla.
2.	The thallus consists of an extended, hyaline, continuous, branched, and filamentous mycelium with relatively short, specialized lateral branches which bear from one to five elongated tenuous predacious tentacles at their apices.
3.	The tentacles are terminated by a small knob, and are thus the specialized organs for capturing rotifers. As they are drawn into the mouth of the feeding animal, the latter becomes caught in some manner and is unable to break away, and death ensues in less than two hours. The tentacles may also serve as haustoria or organs of absorption when no hyphal haustoria are developed in the captured rotifer.
4.	When the tentacles are engulfed down to the apex of the short specialized branches, the latter grow into the mouth of the rotifer and develop highly coiled and richly branched tubular haustoria, which absorb the contents of the host in a few days.
5.	Cylindrical and spindle-shaped gemmae or conidia are produced in acropetal succession at the ends of elongated lateral and terminal branches.
6.	Neither zoösporangia, antheridia, nor oögonia have so far been observed.