The citizen scientists searching for slime moulds

‘It was just a millimetre tall, it has like a little cage for a head and all of the spores are encapsulated in this tiny, tiny little head,’ says Teresa Van Der Heul. ‘It is deep, deep purple in colour, and it’s got a metallic sheen to it. It is the most pretty little thing and I’ve never, never seen it before.’

For 27 years, Van Der Heul has been carrying out her own citizen science project, studying tiny organisms in a small, secluded rainforest on the coast of south-east Australia.

‘I’ve had an interest in fungi since childhood,’ she explains. ‘I started off in plants where I used to collect different variants, and then I started asking questions as to why particular fungi were growing near particular plants. And I didn’t know anybody who could give me answers.’

Van Der Heul started buying books about her favourite topic, devouring information, diagrams and illustrations and learning more about these organisms.

‘These days I don’t have to buy so many books, because other people very kindly put it up on the internet,’ she laughs. ‘When I first started, there was no such thing, so I love the internet now, because I can find answers to the questions that keep piling up.’