Many Headed Slime Mould

Description:

This is a plasmoidal slime mould. No longer classified as a fungi the are in fact large single cell organisms.

Habitat:

Common in the UK - found in grassland

Notes:

Slime Moulds were once considered to be fungi but are now classified in a completely different kingdom. They start off as tiny amoeba-like organisms which live on bacteria . Once they mate they produce plasmodia which can grow to quite large feeding on micro-organisms. They can move about like a giant amoeba. When food is scarce they, migrates to the surface and produces fruiting bodies (as in the photo). The plasmodia produce spores which hatch into amoebae and begin the life-cycle again.