Slime mould day

Today I got a bit wet at the nature reserve, but the compensation was that I found some beautiful slime moulds on a rotting log. Slime moulds are not plants or fungi... or even animals, despite being able to move over logs and the woodland floor in search of food during one phase of their amazing life cycle. They are a complex group of organisms, forming their own kingdom, that get their nutrients by breaking down decaying plant matter. Many of them display remarkable structures and behaviours as they change forms through the life cycle - the slime phase is quite short lived. The main photo is of Ceratiomyxa fruticosa var. porioides and the extra is Tubifera ferruginosa, commonly known as Raspberry slime mould.

I was lucky that I had my old Olympus compact camera in my pocket, that is permanenrly stuck in super-macro mode, as my main camera is back with Olympus for repair. Yesterday I was slinging it over my shoulder when one of the lugs attaching the strap to the body broke and the camera went flying into the side of my car before hitting the ground. Needless to say, there is a bit of damage and probably more internally. However, it is still under warranty and wonderful SRS Microsystems in Watford have sent it to the Olympus European Service and Repair Centre somewhere in Eastern Europe. I hope it doesn't take too long!