Tubifera ferruginosa (Raspberry slime mold)

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Tubifera ferruginosa

Raspberry slime mold, red raspberry slime mold

Kingdom	Fungi	Mushrooms, lichens, gel fungi, yeasts, and molds; also called eukaryotes
Division	Myxomycota	Slime molds, from the Greek words μύξα (myxa), which means “mucus”, and μύκης (myces), which means “fungus”
Class	Myxomycetes	Macroscopic slime molds
Subclass	Endosporeae	Slime molds with endospores
Order	Liceales	An order of plasmodial slime molds in the subclass Myxogastromycetidae
Family	Reticulariaceae	Slime molds producing either aethalia or pseudoaethalia fruiting bodies, which vary in size from 3 mm to 15 mm
Genus	Tubifera	Slime molds whose fruiting bodies are aethalia from numerous, closely pressed together sporangia
Species	ferruginosa	From Ferrug-, “rusty” or “rust”; and osa, “fullness” or “abundance.”

About plant names...

Red raspberry slime mold. What a marvellous name—delicious and repulsive at the same time! It is found on decaying wood.

Identification: In its prime, raspberry slime mold attracts attention with its brilliant color, but at other stages it appears pink, purplish, brownish, or gray. It appears as irregular, pillowy blotches called aethalia, up to 6" (15 cm) around. Close inspection reveals small rounded bumps on the surface, each about ¹/₃₂" (0.5 mm) around, the individual plasmodia. The bumps resemble those on a raspberry. Inside the mass, each plasmodium is shaped like a little cigar. The fruiting bodies appear from June to November.

Edibility: Not edible.

Online References:

by Gary Emberger at Messiah College

Discover Life

Www.fnanaturesearch.org

The Hidden Forest

The Mushroom Observer

6/20/2021 · Heath, Cathance River Nature Preserve, Highland Green, Topsham, Maine
≈ 4 × 3½" (10 × 8.6 cm)

7/14/2013 · Ball Hill Trail, Leominster State Forest, Leominster, Massachusetts
≈ 4 × 3½" (10 × 8.8 cm)

7/23/2017 · Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Pennsylvania
≈ 3 × 2" (8 × 5.4 cm)

6/23/2013 · Rocky Ridge Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 3½ × 4" (8.9 × 10 cm)

7/23/2017 · Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Pennsylvania
≈ 1½ × 1¾" (4.2 × 4.5 cm)

Tubifera ferruginosa description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 11 Jul 2023.

7/1/2023 · Pocahontas State Park, Chesterfield, Virginia

6/23/2013 · Rocky Ridge Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 3 × 3" (8.5 × 7.8 cm)

7/1/2023 · Pocahontas State Park, Chesterfield, Virginia

6/20/2021 · Heath, Cathance River Nature Preserve, Highland Green, Topsham, Maine
≈ 3½ × 3" (9.7 × 7.8 cm)

6/18/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 3½ × 3" (9.3 × 7.8 cm) ID is uncertain

8/12/2009 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, Massachusetts
≈ 10 × 7" (26 × 18 cm) ID is uncertain

6/18/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 2 × 1¾" (5.8 × 5 cm) ID is uncertain

10/5/2016 · Pine Meadow Conservation Area, Ayer, Massachusetts ID is uncertain