Slime molds and happy holidays!

[microbat52]

So since it finally started raining where I live, found a slime mold and read about it, now they are my new obsession. If you dont know what they are, have a look at this:

 

https://youtu.be/GY_uMH8Xpy0

 

Their fluorescence disapointed me a bit, I had very high hopes considering how bright they are in the visible.

 

However, I got some nice christmassy images! Hope you enjoy and you have holidays full of fascinating findings.

 

UVIVF - Cheap UV light, brand unknown, with ZWB2.

 

 

 

 

 

[Doug A]

Really cool images. Colors are great. I'm drawn to the purple spheres and last shot.

 

Never heard of slime mold. I live in the woods and have trees with the white on them. Haven't seen anything eating it. Now I'll have to search from for it.

 

Thanks for sharing,

Doug A

[microbat52]

I had never heard of them before and lived next to an oak grove for years! 

 

[Doug A]

Just read a piece about them. Scientists had a hard time figuring out how to classify them. They can navigate a maze to reach food and will return to the same spot each day, to be fed by scientists. Weird.

 

Looking forward to more images,

Doug A

[colinbm]

Cool pictures & backup story.

[nfoto]

Ever-increasing subject area of interest .... super.

 

Feed it well so it stays put for the photo session

 

Hopes are high that 2022 will bring more of these.

[Andy Perrin]

Oooh, this is wonderful! Pretty photos and also very interesting subject. 

[Guest]

The way scenes were cut from that BBC clip makes it seem like the photographer knew where the mold was headed.

 

In the time lapse video do you think that they panned from a crop or actually had a rig that moved the camera with the intervalometer?

[dabateman]

Here is a link to an other UV photographer slime mold images:

https://www.ultravioletphotography.com/content/index.php?/topic/3544-physarum-polycephalum-slime-mold-in-uv/#comment-30812

 

They move slow but somehow fast when you want to photograph them.

[Guest]

Even at slow, I think it would be difficult to predict the best spread path unless you bait it with food it like nfoto said. What if the guide rail goes the other way. That's why I asked if they probably cropped and panned from stills taken at full camera megapixel. Is that a common technique for this type of work?

[microbat52]

4 hours ago, dabateman said:

Here is a link to an other UV photographer slime mold images:

https://www.ultravioletphotography.com/content/index.php?/topic/3544-physarum-polycephalum-slime-mold-in-uv/#comment-30812

 

They move slow but somehow fast when you want to photograph them.

How did I miss that, I must have been in the middle of moving, thanks for the link!

 

My samples are in a tupper and I fed them cornflakes. Im going away for  week and half so cant really look after them properly and get some nice petri dishes to set up a photoshoot but im so doing it when im back. 

 

@Nemo Andrea come teach us more!

[Doug A]

Since it doesn't have eyes, can't flash be used? If so, I've shot faster moving bugs handheld. @microbat52 you're raising them like pets interesting . I was wandering the woods to find them. Hmmm. 

 

Thanks for sharing,

Doug A

[Andy Perrin]

6 hours ago, microbat52 said:

My samples are in a tupper and I fed them cornflakes. Im going away for  week and half so cant really look after them properly and get some nice petri dishes to set up a photoshoot but im so doing it when im back. 

Now is that a singular they/them? 

[microbat52]

29 minutes ago, Doug A said:

Since it doesn't have eyes, can't flash be used? If so, I've shot faster moving bugs handheld. @microbat52 you're raising them like pets interesting . I was wandering the woods to find them. Hmmm. 

 

Thanks for sharing,

Doug A

 

They dont move THAT fast. 1cm per hour if in a rush. 

 

I found them mostly on tree bark and on fallen logs.

 

Good luck!

[microbat52]

21 minutes ago, Andy Perrin said:

Now is that a singular they/them? 

 

I can only imagine that is the polite way to address a collective of amoebas! 

[Craigo79]

Very cool