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THE USES OF FUNGI.
Another very real use of fungi is known to epicures in the form
of the greenish-blue mould of cheese, to which a "ripe" Stilton
owes its flavour and pungency. This is known to botanists as a
hyphomycetous fungus called Aspergillus glaucus.
It has been proposed to use the black fluid into which Coprinus
atramentarius and Coprinus comatus deliquesce as ink for bank-notes.
The reason of this is that forgery by the use of any other ink could
be instantly detected through the microscope, when moistening would
at once show the presence, or not, of the remarkably large spores of
the fungus.
I have not by any means exhausted my list, but I trust I have
shown you that fungi have a great many more uses than we generally
credit to them. As an example of their importance, I have only to
remind you that one of the greatest scientific reputations of the pre-
sent century, namely, that of M. Pasteur, has been made through
elaborate investigations into the life history and effects of some of
the lowliest organisms of the class to which we are devoted.
Curious Capture of an Eel.—This morning (July 19th), observing a sparrow's
nest which had fallen into a pond in my garden, I noticed the nest was floating
quickly about, and soon saw that a big eel was trying to procure something out of
the nest. As it floated towards the bank, I succeeded in placing a landing net
under it, and securing both the eel and nest, which contained three sparrows' eggs.
The eel weighed upwards of three pounds.—Edward Catchpool, Feering Bury,
near Kelvedon, in "Field," July 23rd, 1887.
The Sheldrake* ( Tadorna cornuta, Gm.).—A nest of this handsome duck was
found on Osea Island this year in a rabbit hole on the cliffs. The old bird was
caught, but again liberated, and the seven eggs taken by Jordan and put under a
hen. These all hatched in three days' time. One of the young ducks was soon
scalped to death by its foster-mother, but I am pleased to say the other six are
now in the possession of Mr. E. H. Bentall, who has done so much for the pre-
servation of our wild birds in this neighbourhood.—Edward A. Fitch, Maldon,
September, 1887.
The Bank Vole (Arvicola glareolus, Schreber) in Essex.—In the
October number of the "Zoologist" (vol. xi., 3rd ser., pp. 361-371), Mr. J. E.
Harting has an excellent monograph of this little animal, illustrated with a plate,
and in which he gives its distribution in Britain. He states that, "it was in
Essex that the Bank Vole was first detected as a British species, and was described
by Yarrel under the name of 'riparia' from specimens procured at Birchanger,
in that county, in the 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society' for 1832, p. 109,
as well as in the 'Magazine of Natural History' (vol. v., p. 599). Much more
recently (1882) Dr. Laver, of Colchester, has seen specimens from West Bergholt
and Layer- de-la- Haye in the same county ('Trans. Essex Field Club,' vol. ii.,
p. 175); and in August, 1885, as recorded by Mr. E. Rosling ('Zoologist,' 1885,
p. 433), an albino Bank Vole was taken by him uninjured from a cat at
Chelmsford, and forwarded alive to the Zoological Gardens, where it was
identified by Mr. Bartlett."
* For a note on the original and correct spelling ("Sheld"—parti-coloured) by Mr. J. H.
Gurney (Jun.) see "Zoologist" (and Series) xi. (1876), page 4846.