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Insect Frass? What I&#039;m assuming is insect frass inside a highly rotted log (I lifted a section up to discover this) at a dense mixed forest edge. Wildly reminded me of &quot;Insect Egg&quot; Slime mold, which I have seen before. Definitely not a slime though!<br /> <figure class="photo"><a href="https://www.jungledragon.com/image/62908/insect-egg_slime_mold_leocarpus_fragilis.html" title="Insect-Egg Slime Mold (Leocarpus fragilis)"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/media.jungledragon.com/images/3231/62908_thumb.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=05GMT0V3GWVNE7GGM1R2&Expires=1759968010&Signature=y%2F%2BCtx2j3ObE8kE%2BuaYiYureo2w%3D" width="200" height="142" alt="Insect-Egg Slime Mold (Leocarpus fragilis) Early fruiting bodies of a slime mold growing on pine needles in a forested area in NW Georgia (Floyd County), US. In this &quot;fruiting body&quot; phase, Leocarpus fragilis is often mistaken for insect eggs.<br /> <br /> Leocarpus fragilis also has a plasmodial stage, usually following periods of rain. When the plasmodium runs out of nutrients, it will differentiate into the egg-like fruiting bodies (pictured here). These structures are specialized sporangia which disperse spores after rupturing. Eggshell Slime Mold,Geotagged,Leocarpus fragilis,Summer,United States" /></a></figure> Geotagged,United States,Winter Click/tap to enlarge Promoted

Insect Frass?

What I'm assuming is insect frass inside a highly rotted log (I lifted a section up to discover this) at a dense mixed forest edge. Wildly reminded me of "Insect Egg" Slime mold, which I have seen before. Definitely not a slime though!

Insect-Egg Slime Mold (Leocarpus fragilis) Early fruiting bodies of a slime mold growing on pine needles in a forested area in NW Georgia (Floyd County), US. In this "fruiting body" phase, Leocarpus fragilis is often mistaken for insect eggs.<br /> <br /> Leocarpus fragilis also has a plasmodial stage, usually following periods of rain. When the plasmodium runs out of nutrients, it will differentiate into the egg-like fruiting bodies (pictured here). These structures are specialized sporangia which disperse spores after rupturing. Eggshell Slime Mold,Geotagged,Leocarpus fragilis,Summer,United States

    comments (3)

  1. View Christine Young's profile
    Christine Young
    Lion
    View Lion class
    When first seeing this photo, I thought it was the Insect Egg Slime too. Are there any similar slimes? It looks like there might be some tunneling to the left. If they are eggs, maybe they were laid by a beetle...some kind of wood-boring beetle? I have no idea. Posted 4 years ago
    1. View Flown Kimmerling's profile
      Flown Kimmerling
      Lion
      View Lion class
      As I mentioned on the iNaturalist thread, I'm not feeling that these are a slime mold at all, but I could be wrong..."Most slime molds have a particular texture, conformation, morphology, attachment point, etc. These were all separate, firm, "pill-like" individuals. Also, they were pretty deep beneath the rotted wood (I ripped open a chunk), not something I've seen (yet) with the slime molds around here. "

      The frass seems the most likely candidate right now.       Posted 4 years ago, modified 4 years ago
      1. View Christine Young's profile
        Christine Young
        Lion
        View Lion class
        I think frass seems likely as well. I've never seen a slime deep in wood. Posted 4 years ago

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By Flown Kimmerling

All rights reserved
Uploaded Jan 15, 2021. Captured Jan 11, 2021 15:13 in 227 Oakman Rd NE, Oakman, GA 30732, USA.
country flag of United States of America Explore United States of America 39,963 9,644 8
  • Canon EOS 6D Mark II
  • f/32.0
  • 1/99s
  • ISO500
  • 100mm
Captured in the winter. More winter photos.

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