Stemonitis splendens (Chocolate Tube Slime Mold)

In the early stages this slime mold looks like a cluster of what might be snail eggs. However, as time goes on the small white spheres begin to elongate and darken into a chocolate brown tube. Very much like the shape of a hotdog, they eventually rise up onto thin darker brown stems. At which point the spores begin to form on the outer surface, and the chocolate brown tube starts to look like it was dipped into powdered hot chocolate mix.