Where the Slime Mould Creeps

Description:

4th edition. This book introduces the fascinating world of myxomycetes, the acellular slime moulds. It describes their intriguing life cycle and important ecological roles as decomposers, nutrient recyclers and food for numerous invertebrates. It reveals their exquisite evocative forms through the microscope and camera, along with time-lapse images that capture the dramatic changes in colour and shape as the fruiting bodies mature.

This revised fourth edition explains how genetic sequencing is dramatically changing how slime moulds are identified, which has hitherto been based on the colour of the spores and the very variable features of the spore-bearing stage. We now know that species diversity has been dramatically underestimated and could take decades to reveal. In the past five years, there have been major revisions of the orders Trichiales and Physarales, and comprehensive examinations of Arcyria and allied genera, and the Trichia botrytis complex. This has meant that some species have been moved from one genus to another, and the creation of several new or re-erected genera. Furthermore, many species are now known to be intricate complexes of several or several dozen species that await formal description. For example, the widespread species known for centuries as Lycogala epidendrum could be more than 100 different species, with specialised equipment and knowledge required to tell them apart.

The use of genetic sequencing and the complexity it is revealing makes the identification of many slime mould species beyond the capabilities of 'citizen scientists', but there are still many species that can be identified in the field. The included micrographs not only reveal the hidden beauty of their microscopic features but also capture those characteristics that are needed for identification.

The past ten years have seen a burgeoning interest in slime moulds, with photographers, students and other enthusiasts captivated by their singular beauty. With more people looking, we now know how ubiquitous they are. This popular and informative book is a lavishly illustrated photographic guide to their identification and an account of a passion for slime moulds that has led to the discovery of a wealth of species living in a tall wet eucalypt forest in northern Tasmania.