Comments on: Weird and Wonderful Slime Mold

By: Dave Ingram

Dave Ingram — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 02:56:17 +0000

Thanks for stopping in Hippo! I can’t see it being harmful to kids or pets and it is kind of fascinating to look at up close!

By: hippo

hippo — Tue, 31 May 2011 12:58:26 +0000

Live in Charlotte,started to get this stuff bout 2 weeks ago.didnt think much of it.My main concern with 3 kids a dog & cat,is ifis harmfull.I got mt wood mulch from our local recycle center,witch they use wood from whoever brings it in from probably a 15-20 mile radious.Our mold eventually turns brown and powdery and goes away

By: Dave Ingram

Dave Ingram — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 04:09:24 +0000

Thanks for visiting Deborah! I’m not sure what affect vinegar will have on slime mold but you’ve got a very cool opportunity to observe it change from the active creeping form to a reproductive state.

I don’t think that Japanese radioactive “fallout” is anywhere near the levels needed to create a spontaneous mutation (or if that is even possible – don’t remember reading about any giant slime molds near Chernobyl). I think more likely that overall climate change might be encouraging certain types of organisms to do better than others but again, I think that even that would be unlikely to create a dramatic slime blob!

By: Deborah Callicott

Deborah Callicott — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 17:24:37 +0000

Yesterday we noticed a number of bright yellow spots on the old portion of the trunk of an elephant plant on our property, this morning there was just one GIANT “spot”. During the night the smaller spots migrated to one of the larger spots, leaving a brown spider web looking residue in the vacated areas. When we touched it with a stick it had the consistancy of “wet” spray insulation foam.

My daughter said it was alien and called it the “blob”, so I reached for my balsamic vinegar and attempted to destroy the creature, only to find that the vinegar just rolled off the back of said “blob”…. now my back yard area smells like vinegar, and I fear some of our hens (yes, the egg laying type) will attmept to eat the mess …..

We live in NE Florida and I have never seen anything like this before … Does anyone know if this stuff is dangerous? Can unseen spores be inhaled ? Could the recent low-grade plutonium radiation now being found here from the Japanese meltdown have activated this stuff?

Quite frankly it just creeps me out ……

By: lea coleman

lea coleman — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 18:45:43 +0000

I have just noticed some white slime mold on the long grass in my garden it seems to be dotted along a line of grass each about 5 feet apart it’s sitting on top of clumps of long grass, not shaded it’s a sunny spot during the day although the earth is always very damp.