Slime
“mystery” solved
RSPB welcomes public response to call
for information on the appearance of strange “jelly-like” substance at its Ham
Wall Nature reserve in Somerset
Following yesterday’s appeal for
information about a strange jelly like substance that has appeared at its Ham
Wall nature reserve in Somerset the RSPB has received a number of theories about
its origin.
Tony Whitehead, spokesperson for the
RSPB in the south west said; “We’ve been delighted by the number of people that
have contacted us about the mystery slime.
Many pointed out the sighting of a
strange meteor like object over the reserve last week [Note 1] captured on film
by a local wildlife photographer. However, the majority of people suggested more
earthly origins. Some identified it as a slime mould, but by far the commonest
was that its appearance was related to amphibian
activity.”
The RSPB was contacted by Peter Green
a Devonshire vet who works with wildlife, who gave a particularly logical and
simple explanation following his own researches.
Tony Whitehead explains: “At this time
of year amphibians are spawning. The spawn is held in a substance known as
glycoprotein which is stored in the female’s body.
“If the animal is attacked by a
predator – herons for instance are fond of the occasional frog – it will quite
naturally drop its spawn and the associated glycoprotein. This is designed to
swell on contact with water, which gives the gelatinous mass we are all familiar
with in frog spawn. However, if it’s unfertilized, it is just the empty
glycoprotein that is dropped – which on contact with moist ground will swell and
give a clear slime like substance.”
“While this is our favoured
explanation for this appearance of slime, it’s also worth remembering that other
things can give a similar appearance. Certain slime moulds can. So can the
wonderfully named crystal brain fungus, but this only appears on wood. And as
mentioned yesterday, certain algae, and blue-green algae can also appear as a
clear slime”
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