Pink Stemonitis. All images © Barry Webb, licensed
# Barry Webb Documents a Marvelous, Macro Array of Colorful Slime Molds
March 31, 2026
NaturePhotography
Kate Mothes
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Blown wildly out of proportion in large format, the slime molds that British photographer Barry Webb captures seem atmospheric and sculptural. Stemonitis, for example, looks like dozens of thin pieces of wire with their ends coated in colored wax. But this fungi-like form is one of hundreds of kinds of slime mold, and it typically only reaches a height of about two centimeters at the most. Thanks to Webb’s macro photos, we glimpse a phenomenally beautiful world up-close that is otherwise virtually invisible.
Scientists have documented hundreds of these organisms, which aren’t actually related to plants, fungi, animals, or molds—despite the name. They comprise a unique group unto themselves, more closely related to amoebas. And new discoveries are being made all the time. From mottled gray bulbs that look like snow-covered trees to pink, coral-like tendrils, Webb chronicles a huge array of colors and shapes. He also consistently submits images to local and national botanical records so that researchers have access to high-resolution imagery.
Didymium squamulosum
Webb’s image of a species called _Lamproderma scintillans_ , partly engulfed by a water droplet, won the Botanical Britain category of the British Wildlife Photography Awards. Several of his photos are on display in large format in the exhibition _Mythos Wald_ at Gasometer Oberhausen in Germany, which continues through the end of the year. And in the U.K., see Webb’s awarded images in the 2026 International Garden Photographer of the Year exhibition at Cambridge University Botanic Garden. Find more on his Instagram.
Cribraria argillacea Cribraria aurantiaca Physarum psittacinum and tiny mites Lamproderma on top of Trichia flavicoma Deformed Stemonitis Pink Arcyria
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