Slime balls

摘要

THOUGH they may resemble something from another planet, these strange, mushroom-like structures are in fact the reproductive phase of Physarum album, a slime mould species that feeds on bacteria on forest floors. Perched on top of each "stem" is the slime mould's fruiting body, containing thousands of spores that burst and release their contents when the mould is ready to reproduce. Intricate though these structures are, most are only a few millimetres high. This makes them "painstakingly difficult to find", says photographer Andy Sands from Hertfordshire in the UK, who took this shot.