By Andy Ames

Have you ever noticed a suspicious white blob on the side of tree? This is an organism that moves through the environment, but isn’t an animal. It has the ability to learn, but has no brain. It detects light, but has no eyes. Despite its name, it is not a fungus or plant. This is a reticularia lycoperdon, or the “False Puffball” slime mold. Slime molds are interesting organisms that don’t fall into the animal, plant, or fungi classification. Most slime molds are microscopic so cannot be seen by the naked eye. False Puffballs, however, belong to the Plasmodail slime molds which can be quite large. In their early growing and feeding stage, slime molds normally avoid light. When they mature and ready to form reproductive spores, they switch to being attracted to light, thus being easier to find. Slime molds are single celled but have many, perhaps even thousands, of nuclei. Individuals can fuse together, merging into a single cell. Slime molds feed on microorganisms, like bacteria and yeast, that are found on decaying wood. Some species even “farm” bacteria, carrying and cultivating bacteria to consume later. Slime molds move in a pulsing fashion in search of food. As they move, slime molds leave a chemical trail, allowing it to know where it found, or didn’t find, food sources. Once it detects food it will engulf and absorb its prey. When food sources dry up, slime molds enter a sporangial phase, swelling up, each nuclei forming a spore, and eventually breaking open to release the spores for dispersal. During dry spells slime molds can go dormant, sometimes for many years, until reinvigorated by rains.

False Puffball slime molds are found mostly on standing dead trees. Other species may be seen on downed trees or decaying ground litter. Like fungi, slime molds thrive in moist conditions. All this goes to show, there is always more than meets the eye.