Fuligo septica, Dog's Vomit Slime Mould

Common Name: Dog's Vomit Slime Mould

Although not technically fungi, the slime moulds are interesting organisms nevertheless. This particular specimen, Fuligo septica, sometimes called Dog's Vomit Slime Mould (and one can readily see why!) occurs as slimy to crust-like sheets or cushion-like iregular masses on stumps, logs, living plants, and wood mulches in landscapes in the warmer months.

It first appears as a white to bright yellow slimy mass. Slime mould plasmodia creep about over the surfaces of materials, engulfing bacteria, spores of fungi and plants, protozoa, and particles of nonliving organic matter. At some point, plasmodia convert into spore-bearing structures.

In Fuligo, the plasmodium converts into a cushion-shaped mass of spores enclosed by an outer wall called a peridium. This structure is called an aethalium. Fuligo septica produces the largest spore-producing structure of any known slime mould. Also sometimes called the 'Scrambled Egg' slime mould.

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