Cool damp dew-y mornings are the best times to go look for neat insects. I know, it probably is not on your list of things to do bright and early in the morning.But that is my 'quiet' time to myself so I go and enjoy the nice easy slow walk through the pasture weeds on the edge of the forest. The birds and a few deer are my company as I stop and peer closely at yarrow, ox eye daisy and other plants.
I was rather disappointed. But finding this bumble bee was pretty exciting. The bumble has heavy dew on it and if you can see the photo large, you might be able to find the Bee Mite on it!
So...that slime mold that looked like fish eggs?
24 hours later...it looked like this....
The log it was found on...
The yellow slime mold went from this
to this in 24 hours
The third day it turned brown and white. No photo of that.
Slime molds are very hard to ID. So any ID will be a best guess. I am going with common names as I think they are more fun.
The white stuff could be White Finger Slime mold. The pinkish blob should be Wolf's Milk.
The next shot is of the log I found it on.
Note to self: Tie a piece of orange twine above the
log next time! Because...
I wasn't able to find it again.
Oh, it has to be easy to find this stuff right?
Here is my boot from the morning walk.
See the little white spots on the log?
These are those little white spots.
I could not ID this at all!
[I suspect that they are in the family of
Tube Slime Molds]
Just for size comparison, here is a dime
with the tiny little fungi/slime mold?
I figured I had struck gold in discovering these little things. I tied some twine to the tree next to the log so I can go back and see how it changes.
I slowly walked through the damp area and peered at logs and just when I gave up to go home and check on things I saw something that caught my eye.
Chocolate Tube Slime Mold
getting ready to fruit!
On another log nearby I found immature
Chocolate Tube Slime Mold!
As it matures, it changes color
How amazingly lucky I was
to find these in different stages
in the same area!
Fruited CTSM:
I had company coming, so reluctantly headed back towards the house.
I was bummed in a way because I'd read that these little slime molds change rather quickly and if I couldn't get back before too long, they may fruit and disappear.
Imagine my surprise when I discovered more
Deadman's Fingers
They are so alien looking that I just had to add this Lego Alien to the photo. I've found this fungi several times this year and I wonder why I've never spotted it before?
Can you guess what I'll be doing today?
I just looked at and read about slime mold and found it interesting! How do you do that? Great photos help.
ReplyDeleteI have an insane curiosity to find things in nature and learn about them. The woods I was in has many fallen old trees and is shady and moist.
DeleteWith a bit of research and a lot of searching, I was able to discover a new tiny world that was fascinating!
It is my first slimy blog that I have ever read. I have been seeing bees this year as they have been scarce the past few years. Who knows where you will be next for sure!
ReplyDeleteThanks, when the weather is just right, I drop everything and hunt fungi and slime molds out of curiosity. This week is the Thunder Moon, so I may be out wandering the night to watch the moon!
DeleteThe bee mite is way cool! I enjoyed all your photos, they are wonderful macros:)
ReplyDeleteYou found cool stuff! How nice to find the evolving growth in stages. Fungi etc is so fleeting. Timing (and good observation skills) counts.
ReplyDelete