Slime molds on a fallen oak leaf - with a springtail visitor!
I was taking a follow-up photo of the tiny slime molds (Myxogastria, Myxomycetes) that I showed yesterday in this photo when a visitor showed up - look in the lower left of my photo. It's a Globular Springtail (Symphypleona, Collembola) - maybe family Dicyrtomidae and genus Ptenothrix? It moved quickly across the dead leaf and disappeared over the edge. The slime molds are less than a millimeter across which gives scale. They look quite different after just one day, solidifying and going from white to gray. They are still developing, but maybe they are Diderma effusum? I'll keep an eye on them for as long as I can find them. (San Marcos Pass, 14 January 2019)
Our storm today pretty much crapped out with just 1/10 inch, though it was blustery all day. Now the forecast is for heavy rain on Tuesday and again on Thursday. There's a NWS Flash Flood Watch in effect Tuesday afternoon, and I'm sure people below last year's Thomas Fire are paying attention. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has now issued an evacuation order for the burn areas. I hope the new storm delivers more rain than today's storm - but doesn't cause flooding!
Slime molds on a fallen oak leaf - with a springtail visitor!
I was taking a follow-up photo of the tiny slime molds (Myxogastria, Myxomycetes) that I showed yesterday in this photo when a visitor showed up - look in the lower left of my photo. It's a Globular Springtail (Symphypleona, Collembola) - maybe family Dicyrtomidae and genus Ptenothrix? It moved quickly across the dead leaf and disappeared over the edge. The slime molds are less than a millimeter across which gives scale. They look quite different after just one day, solidifying and going from white to gray. They are still developing, but maybe they are Diderma effusum? I'll keep an eye on them for as long as I can find them. (San Marcos Pass, 14 January 2019)
Our storm today pretty much crapped out with just 1/10 inch, though it was blustery all day. Now the forecast is for heavy rain on Tuesday and again on Thursday. There's a NWS Flash Flood Watch in effect Tuesday afternoon, and I'm sure people below last year's Thomas Fire are paying attention. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has now issued an evacuation order for the burn areas. I hope the new storm delivers more rain than today's storm - but doesn't cause flooding!