Happy Halloween Folks - here's something suitably slimey from RSPB Arne! by Tony Whitehead, RSPB

"Can you write us a quick blog on slime mould Tony?"

"Of course" I replied, whilst wondering a) why ask me, do I look like the sort of guy who know's everything about slime mould and b) remembering that slime mould's are remarkable things.

I say "things" quite deliberately. The first thing I recalled before rushing off to the internet, was that slime moulds are neither plants nor fungi. And, despite the fact they can move, neither are they animals.

They are in fact … brainless soil dwelling amoeba. And I don't mean that pejoratively. That's what they are.

However, plucky types that they are, they'd don't let the lack of a brain hold them back. Not one bit. There are more than 900 species world wide and they come in all sorts of remarkable slimy shapes … some like honeycomb, some like black berries. And some like dog vomit. Yes, there is a slime mould called the "dog vomit slime mould".

And they are found everywhere, from the poles to the tropics, although given the choice, forest floors are their des res.

When food is abundant, slime moulds just exist as single celled organisms, so aren't really visible. But, when food becomes scarce they team together to form a multicelluar slimy mass … the perfect halloween gift perhaps.

In this form the cells change their function and make fruiting stalks that produce spores. These spores are then picked up by passing animals or the wind and off they go, planting themselves elsewhere … the old cells dying, thus sacrificing themselves for the greater good.

This in itself is remarkable. But it doesn't end there. Whilst in slimy blob for, they can also move around. Well, spread about a bit is probably a better term. They can even get themselves out of mazes. For a brainless amoeba that's quite a feat … and there should be a prize for the scientist who though "wonder what happens if I put this amoeba in a maze". Genius. And this brainless problem solving is of huge interest to computer engineers looking to understand how nature works things out.

But of course, lets no forget that, while useful to curious scientists and keen computer designers, slime mould in themselves also work for you and me … every day along with all sorts of other microorganisms, helping recycle materials and keeping the world going.

So let's hear it for slime moulds …