From W. G. Smith 24 July 1877
15, Mildmay Grove, N.
24 July 1877
My dear Sir
During the next day or two I will carefully examine the leaves sent & report with pleasure— They do not however seem especially promising to the fungus eye—1
I have just been observing a most curious thing that will no doubt interest you— When at the B. Musm. last week Mr Carruthers handed me a transparent slice through a fossil Lepidodendron from the Coal Measures (He has recently referred to this slice as containing a fossil fungus, in his address before the Geological Association—the cut he gives is however of no value as it was drawn by some one who knew nothing about fungi)2
There can be no doubt whatever that the parasite in question is a true Pythium & in no way to be distinguished from the species of this genus now living (several species were engraved for me for Gardeners Chronicle July. 1. 1876). No doubt you know the genus well. Berkeley, De Bary, I & many others believe them to be true fungi, other men place them with the Algæ or Saprolegnieæ but this is of no moment as all the plants run together at this point3
Now the curious thing about this fossil Pythium is this— Many of the oogonia are still balanced on their tender threads, and within some of the oogonia the Zoospores may be most distinctly seen in situ
I think the fact of a fossil fungus with fossil zoospores within the Vascular bundles of a Lepidodendron is quite new
Mr Carruthers has given me permission to describe & engrave the plant for publication— The species is the same size as Pythium proliferum De Bary engraved in G. Chron4
Yours faithfully | W. G. Smith
Chas Darwin Esq | F.R.S.
Footnotes
Bibliography
Carruthers, William. 1876. [Presidential address to the Geologists’ Association. Read 3 November 1876.] Proceedings of the Geological Association 5 (1876–8): 17–35.
Smith, Worthington George. 1877. A fossil Peronospora. Gardeners’ Chronicle, 20 October 1877, pp. 499–500.
Summary
Reports a fossil fungus, complete with fossil zoospores, within the vascular bundles of a Lepidodendron from the Coal Measures. The genus is Pythium and it appears no different from living species.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-11068
- From
- Worthington George Smith
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- London, Mildmay Grove, 15
- Source of text
- DAR 177: 201
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 11068,” accessed on 27 May 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-11068.xml