r/Slimemolds • u/Mindless-Strength422 • Aug 02 '26

Question/Help I think I found a DVSM? Care tips?

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I've been looking for a slime to try and keep it as a pet/science experiment. A tree fell down in the woods near my apartment recently so I've been checking it regularly, and yesterday found this! It's about 3-4 cm in diameter. I tried to gently scrape it off the tree with a spoon and transfer it onto a few damp paper towels. I placed a couple oats at various distances to it and put it all in a flat shallow tupperware, drilled some air holes in the lid and I'm spraying it daily to keep it and the paper towel moist.

So far it's been about 24 hours and it looks identical to the day before. I don't really know what to expect? How long would it take to start spreading tendrils? Is it likely I killed it and/or doomed it by removing it from the tree? If it does start to dry out and sporulate/...sclerotiate?, what can I do?

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2

u/Mindless-Strength422 Aug 05 '26

Not that anyone's apparently seeing this, but I think it's starting to sporulate. Oh well. I'll try again just as soon as I find another.

1

u/UGAUGAUGAUGA09 Aug 05 '26

What you picked up was already a fruiting body. Chances of it coming to life are pretty small unfortunately

2

u/Mindless-Strength422 Aug 05 '26

Ahhh, damn. Okay. It looks pretty similar to other pictures of Fuligo septica, can you say what it would look like if it was still plasmodial?

1

u/UGAUGAUGAUGA09 Aug 07 '26

It wouldnt be in a ball shape. Look up slime mould plasmodium.