Summary:
Features include 1) resupinate growth on wood, 2) a broadly effused, thin, waxy-membranaceous fruitbody, loosely attached to the substrate, with a whitish, margin thinning out and fibrillose with some mycelial threads, 3) spores that are round, smooth, and inamyloid with a distinct apiculus, 4) (2)4-spored basidia, 5) projecting cystidia sometimes found that are capitate but not encrusted, and 6) hyphae with clamp connections.
Athelia laxa has been found in BC, CT, PA, and VA, (Julich(3)).
Fruiting body:
"broadly effused, thin, waxy-membranaceous", in section 0.02-0.03cm thick, loosely attached to substrate by a cottony subiculum; surface probably white when growing, in the herbarium pale ivory-yellow; even, not much cracked; "margin thinning out, fibrillose, with some mycelial threads", (Burt), thin, pellicular to slightly membranous; whitish to cream; sometimes with a few narrow hyphal strands, (Julich)
Microscopic:
SPORES 4.5-6 microns in diameter, round, smooth; BASIDIA 4-spored, up to 6 microns wide; CYSTIDIA 4.5-6 microns wide, protruding about 30-50 microns beyond the basidia, often capitate and 6-9 microns wide at top, cystidia "not incrusted or with only a few incrusting granules"; no gloeocystidia; the compact hymenium supported by a very broad layer of hyphae 1.5-2 microns wide (rarely 3 microns wide), "loosely interwoven, thin-walled, granule-incrusted", "with the hyphae more densely arranged in the middle zone of this layer", (Burt), SPORES (5.5)6-6.5(7) microns, round, thin-walled to slightly thick-walled (up to 0.3 microns thick), with distinct apiculus; BASIDIA 18-33 x 6.5-8.5 microns, +/- clavate; LEPTOCYSTIDIA 40-50 x 6-7 microns, projecting up to 30 microns, the upper capitate part 7-8 microns wide, thin-walled, smooth, with basal clamp connection; HYPHAE 2-2.5(3) microns wide, colorless to slightly yellowish, thin-walled (up to 0.3 microns thick), (Julich(5)), SPORES (5.5)6-6.5(7) microns, colorless, inamyloid, with distinct apiculus, thin-walled to somewhat thick-walled (0.2-0.3 microns); BASIDIA mostly 4-spored, rarely 2-spored, 18-33 x 6.5-8.5 microns, clamped at base; CYSTIDIA relatively rare, not found immediately in all specimens, about 40-50 x 6-7 microns, projecting about 30-50 microns beyond the hymenium, capitate on the end (7-8 microns wide), thin-walled, colorless, with a large clamp connection at the base, not encrusted; hyphae about 2-2.5(3) microns wide, colorless to pale yellowish, walls thin to somewhat thick (about 0.3 microns), rarely anastomosing, clamp connections on all septa, crystals between the hyphae relatively frequent, (Julich(3))
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