Linda Seward
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Slime: Badhamia utricularis

3/28/2022

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I saw my first slime mould a couple of years ago at Park Wood near Huntercombe in Oxfordshire. It was bright yellow and covered the lower bit of an old log with a beautiful web of colour.
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I took a lot of photos and when I got home and looked it up, I found that it was called Badhamia utricularis and that it was a common slime mould. 
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I also found out that slime is neither a plant or a fungus but a plasmodium that can move to seek food, leaving trails of slime as it goes along that disappear after it has found its new location.
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Above you can see half of a Jelly Rot fungus (Phlebia tremellosa) being devoured. The slime will move up and totally consume the rest before the day is out. The slime trails are fascinating too.
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Below is another view of the slime having a feast on Jelly Rot (Phlebia tremellosa) and Hairy Curtain Crust (Stereum hirsutum) which it favours.
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Below is Badhamia utricularis feasting on some more Hairy Curtain Crust (Stereum hirsutum).
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When ready, the slime will coalesce to form balls.
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Eventually the balls will hang in bunches on skinny yellow strings.
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The yellow balls gradually turn darker.
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Then they become almost black with greyish tinges.
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Some people think they look like bunches of grapes, though not very appetising!
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There can be literally thousands of these black balls.
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The black balls gradually turn grey and flooffy as they become ready to release their spores.
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The slightest breeze will disperse the spores to all corners of the woodland, leaving just the strings which quickly disappear. Finally, it looks as if nothing had ever been there.
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  • Home
  • Books & publications
    • Quilting books >
      • Latest: Patchwork, Quilting & Applique
      • Art Quilting
    • Quilt Articles >
      • Cricket quilts
      • The Big ‘O’
      • Create Whimsy Interview
      • Crazy Curve Wallhanging
      • At the Sharp End
    • Bibliography
    • Nature >
      • Fungi
      • Nature Articles
      • Magazine Articles >
        • Fungi Spotting in the Chilterns
        • Professor Richard Fortey
        • Looking for Lichens in the Chilterns
        • Bees
        • Thistles and other Prickly Plants
        • Chilterns Wonderland
        • Yellow & White Flowers of Early Spring
        • Hairstreak article: Silver-studded blue butterflies
  • Quilts
    • Galleries >
      • 2019 to present
      • 2016 to 2018
      • 2013 to 2015
      • 2007 to 2012
      • 2000 to 2006
      • 1994 to 1999
      • For sale
  • Photography
    • Fungi Photography >
      • Fungi Photo Features
      • Rare fungi
      • Best Fungi Photos 2021
    • Nature Photography >
      • 2021
      • 2022
      • 2023
    • 365-day Photo Challenge >
      • 2023 Photo Challenge
      • 2022 Photo Challenge
    • Dog portraits
  • News
  • About
    • Biography
    • Judging
    • Exhibitions
    • Talks
    • Contact