# Unknown moss? **URL:** \ **Category:** Image Critiques\ **Tags:** plant-life\ **Created:** [March 7, 2023, 1:47pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921 "2023-03-07T13:47:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Teep](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@Teep](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Teep)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:47pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/1 "2023-03-07T13:47:54Z")
![Unknown moss?](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/d/0/d0b7f8f2ba2a1d230863722bc662db0d5b11ed52.jpeg) From a trip to a bird sanctuary in east Texas. ### Type of Critique Requested - Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition. - Conceptual: Feedback on the message and story conveyed by the image. - Emotional: Feedback on the emotional impact and artistic value of the image. - Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus and reproduction of colors and details, post-processing, and print quality. ### Specific Feedback and Self-Critique The striking color of the moss against the dark log and texture caught my eye. ### Technical Details Focus stacked from three images. ---
**Author:** ![Kris\_Smith](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/kris_smith/32/59826_2.png) [@Kris\_Smith](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Kris_Smith)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:12pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/2 "2023-03-07T14:12:45Z")
Not a moss, a slime mold! Specifically _Fuligo septica_ also known as scrambled eggs. Slime molds are single-celled organisms that normally lead solitary lives, but when conditions are right they mass in the millions and produce this odd structure called a plasmodium. Researchers think it’s because a great food source was identified and everyone came to the feast. Some plasmodia are for spore production and release. Terrific find. Great textures huh? You could tighten the crop on any one of the main areas for a closer look. ---
**Author:** ![Teep](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@Teep](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Teep)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:15pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/3 "2023-03-07T14:15:01Z")
Thanks Kristen, I had never seen this before and didn’t know what it really was. I saw a lot of it in the swamps as we walked through and have several more photos of it, the color is so outstanding. ---
**Author:** ![Kris\_Smith](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/kris_smith/32/59826_2.png) [@Kris\_Smith](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Kris_Smith)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:18pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/4 "2023-03-07T14:18:22Z")
I’ve just begun to see and identify slime molds in the field. Most of the fruiting bodies are not anywhere this large and need a hand lens to be seen. This one is also called dog vomit slime mold because when the plasmodium breaks down it gets brown and goopy. Ugh. But they’re really interesting organisms - animals that reproduce with spores like mosses, ferns and mushrooms. Here is a link to some I found in my yard last year - > [@Lycogala epidendrum](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/lycogala-epidendrum/31182): > > aka Wolf’s Milk slime mold that I found in the yard - it really is this bright, orangey-pink. Slime molds are single-cell organisms that mostly live solitary lives. When conditions are right they congregate together in the millions and form these fruiting bodies on rotting wood. Like the fruiting bodies of fungi, these are for spore dispersal, starting as bright pink and turning gray as they mature. The spores inside are in a gluey mass and so sometimes these are called T… ---
**Author:** ![David\_Mullin](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/david_mullin/32/43530_2.png) [@David\_Mullin](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/David_Mullin)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2023, 12:19am UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/5 "2023-03-09T00:19:30Z")
Garry, such a cool yellow color. Thank you @Kris_Smith for the explanation of this funky mold. I would like to see a tighter crop to make the slime even more of a star in this photo. Great find and capture! ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Fach](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/bill_fach/32/78290_2.png) [@Bill\_Fach](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Bill_Fach)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2023, 3:59pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/6 "2023-03-09T15:59:51Z")
Garry: A good find indeed. Don’t have much to add to the previous comments. One tiny nit is the yellow is a bit hot, especially on the upper cluster. Well seen and captured. \>=))\> ---
**Author:** ![Teep](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@Teep](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Teep)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/unknown-moss/33921/7 "2023-03-09T17:19:31Z")
Bill, thanks. I’ll correct that.