Slime mold or slime mould is an informal name given to a polyphyletic assemblage of unrelated eukaryotic organisms in the Stramenopiles, Rhizaria, Discoba, Amoebozoa and Holomycota clades. Most are microscopic; those in the Myxogastria form larger plasmodial slime molds visible to the naked eye. The slime mold life cycle includes a free-living single-celled stage and the formation of spores. Spores are often produced in macroscopic multicellular or multinucleate fruiting bodies that may be formed through aggregation or fusion; aggregation is driven by chemical signals called acrasins. Slime molds contribute to the decomposition of dead vegetation; some are parasitic.
Puffballs are a type of fungus featuring a ball-shaped fruit body that bursts on contact or impact, releasing a cloud of dust-like spores into the surrounding area. Puffballs belong to the division Basidiomycota and encompass several genera, including Calvatia, Calbovista and Lycoperdon. The puffballs were previously treated as a taxonomic group called the Gasteromycetes or Gasteromycetidae, but they are now known to be a polyphyletic assemblage.
Mycetozoa is a polyphyletic grouping of slime molds. It was originally thought to be a monophyletic clade, but recently it was discovered that protostelia are a polyphyletic group within Conosa.
Fuligo is a widespread genus of plasmodial slime mold in the family Physaraceae. These organisms are protozoans rather than fungi, but for historical reasons are sometimes treated as part of mycology.
Lycoperdon perlatum, popularly known as the common puffball, warted puffball, gem-studded puffball or devil's snuff-box, is a species of puffball fungus in the family Agaricaceae. A widespread species with a cosmopolitan distribution, it is a medium-sized puffball with a round fruit body tapering to a wide stalk, and dimensions of 1.5 to 6 cm wide by 3 to 10 cm tall. It is off-white with a top covered in short spiny bumps or "jewels", which are easily rubbed off to leave a netlike pattern on the surface. When mature it becomes brown, and a hole in the top opens to release spores in a burst when the body is compressed by touch or falling raindrops.
Lycoperdon umbrinum, commonly known as the umber-brown puffball, is a type of Puffball mushroom in the genus Lycoperdon. It is found in China, Europe, Africa, and North America.
Lycogala epidendrum, commonly known as wolf's milk or groening's slime, is a cosmopolitan species of myxogastrid amoeba which is often mistaken for a fungus. The aethalia, or fruiting bodies, occur either scattered or in groups on damp rotten wood, especially on large logs, from June to November. These aethalia are small, pink to brown cushion-like blobs. They may ooze a pink "paste" if the outer wall is broken before maturity. When mature, the colour tends to become more brownish. When not fruiting, single celled individuals move about as very small, red amoeba-like organisms called plasmodia, masses of protoplasm that engulf bacteria, as well as fungal and plant spores, protozoa, and particles of non-living organic matter through phagocytosis.
Fuligo septica is a species of slime mold, and a member of the class Myxomycetes. It is commonly known as scrambled egg slime, or flowers of tan because of its peculiar yellowish appearance. It is also known as dog vomit slime mold or Jasmine mold and is relatively common with a worldwide distribution, often being found on bark mulch in urban areas after heavy rain or excessive watering. Their spores are produced on or in aerial sporangia and are spread by wind.
Myxogastria/Myxogastrea or Myxomycetes (ICN) is a class of slime molds that contains 5 orders, 14 families, 62 genera, and 888 species. They are colloquially known as the plasmodial or acellular slime moulds.
Trichiales is an order of slime moulds in the phylum Amoebozoa. Trichiales is one of five orders in the group Myxomycetes, or the true plasmodial slime molds. It is also currently categorized under the superorder Lucisporidia with its sister group, Liceales. The order was first described by Thomas MacBride in 1922, and has retained the same name and status as a defined order in present phylogeny. In the plasmodium form, members of Trichiales lack a columella but have a well-developed capillitium for spore dispersal. The shape and details of the capillitium are used to define families within the order. Spores are brightly coloured, ranging from clear, white and yellow to pink and red-brown tones. The order currently has 4 families, 14 genera and 174 species. Recent molecular research has shown that while Trichiales probably represents a true taxonomic group, its sister group Liceales is likely paraphyletic, and it has been suggested that several genera from the Liceales should be reclassified under Trichiales instead.
Tubifera is a genus of slime moulds from the subclass Myxogastria. The genus comprises 12 species.
Lycoperdon echinatum, commonly known as the spiny puffball or the spring puffball, is a type of puffball mushroom in the family Agaricaceae. The saprobic species has been found in Africa, Europe, Central America, and North America, where it grows on soil in deciduous woods, glades, and pastures. It has been proposed that North American specimens be considered a separate species, Lycoperdon americanum, but this suggestion has not been followed by most authors. Molecular analysis indicates that L. echinatum is closely related to the puffball genus Handkea.
The gasteroid fungi are a group of fungi in the Basidiomycota. Species were formerly placed in the obsolete class Gasteromycetes Fr., or the equally obsolete order Gasteromycetales Rea, because they produce spores inside their basidiocarps rather than on an outer surface. However, the class is polyphyletic, as such species—which include puffballs, earthstars, stinkhorns, and false truffles—are not closely related to each other. Because they are often studied as a group, it has been convenient to retain the informal (non-taxonomic) name of "gasteroid fungi".
Lycoperdon radicatum is a species of puffball mushroom, also called rooting puffball, in the family Agaricaceae. It was described in 1848 by French botanists Michel Charles Durieu de Maisonneuve and Camille Montagne in Algeria. Due to its Bovista-like capillitium it was previously placed in the genus Bovistella. It is nonpoisonous. It is easily recognised by its 4-8 cm rigid, white-gray pseudoroot.
Handkea excipuliformis, commonly known as the pestle puffball or long-stemmed puffball, is a species of the family Agaricaceae. A rather large puffball, it may reach dimensions of up to 15 cm (5.9 in) broad by 25 cm (9.8 in) tall. Widespread in northern temperate zones, it is found frequently on pastures and sandy heaths.
Brefeldia maxima is a species of non-parasitic plasmodial slime mold, and a member of the class Myxomycetes. It is commonly known as the tapioca slime mold because of its peculiar pure white, tapioca pudding-like appearance. A common species with a worldwide distribution, particularly in North America and Europe. It is often found on bark after heavy rain or excessive watering. Their spores are produced on or in aerial sporangia and are spread by wind, however beetles of the family Latridiidae are also reported to disperse the spores. Bonner states that soil invertebrates and rain mainly disperse spores as they are sticky and unlikely to be carried by air currents.
Hemitrichia is a genus of slime molds, of the family Trichiidae, found within the order Trichiida. It was first described by Josef Rostafinski in 1873 and remains a well-defined genus of the slime molds. Hemitrichia species exhibit either plasmodiocarp or sporangium fruiting bodies, both of which are well-known and recognizable slime molds seen on multiple continents. The genus includes Hemtrichia serpula, known as the pretzel slime mold, an iconic and widespread species that has been used to examine speciation in slime molds.
Enteridium is a genus of slime molds belonging to the family Reticulariaceae.
Elaeomyxa is a genus of slime molds in the family Lamprodermataceae. As of May 2022, there are four known species in the genus. Species in this genus have been documented in North America, Eurasia, Africa, and Australasia.
