Move over fungi hunters, there's a new trend in the world of micro-organism spotting in Tasmania — the search for slime mould.

Key points: Slime moulds can be colourful, iridescent and intricate — anything but ugly

Slime moulds can be colourful, iridescent and intricate — anything but ugly They have been around for a billion years

They have been around for a billion years They move and feed, dining on bacteria and other single-cell organisms

But don't be fooled by its ugly name, these tiny microbes are found in a stunning array of colours and shapes.

Tasmania is home to more than 100 species of them, including one called Dog's Vomit.

"They're absolutely exquisite organisms and, unfortunately, slime mould isn't a good name in that it doesn't convey their beauty," Tasmanian naturalist Sarah Lloyd said.

The beauty of slime moulds defies their name. ( Supplied: Sarah Lloyd )

"They really look fantastic under the microscope.

"A lot of them are iridescent, so they have these purple hues and golden colour and they have this intricate structure, so they're very beautiful."

As Australia's pioneering expert on slime moulds, Sarah Lloyd has written a twice-printed book entitled Where the Slime Mould Creeps.

Slime moulds have been around for about a billion years. ( Supplied: Sarah Lloyd )

She said it was believed the organisms colonised the land at the same time as plants — about a billion years ago.

Slime moulds, or myxomycetes, come in several different forms which can alter according to light, air and their immediate natural environment.

They feed on bacteria and other single-cell organisms to recycle nutrients in the soil.

Ms Lloyd has about 1,700 match boxes full of slime moulds.

Ms Lloyd said they have a chequered history of taxonomy and new discoveries were being made all the time.

"They were first thought to be fungi because they have a spore-bearing stage — they reproduce spores like fungi do," she said.

"But they do have a feeding/moving stage — so they move about and feed on fungi and algae and other things in the forest.

"Because they have this moving/feeding stage, they were once thought to be animals.

"Now they're known to be amoeba, that's a single-cell organism, and they have a single-cell stage that lives in the soil and feeds on bacteria and other single-cell organisms."

Known to move and feed, slime moulds were once thought to be animals. ( Supplied: Sarah Lloyd )

Interest in tiny organisms growing

Ms Lloyd was one of more than 30 renowned scientists and naturalists conducting surveys in the Tarkine last weekend for the Bob Brown Foundation's Bio Blitz event.

Many of the surveys focused on species that are only clearly visible under a microscope.

Ms Lloyd first became interested in slime mould while observing specimens on her own property with a magnifying lens and torch, and in a forest near Westbury in the state's north.

Seeking out slime moulds in Tasmania's rainforests is becoming more popular. ( Supplied: Sarah Lloyd )

Although now an expert in the field, Ms Lloyd said the number of citizen scientists was increasing in Tasmania as first fungi-hunting and now the search for slime mould in the state's temperate rainforests became more popular.

"Australia's one of the least studied countries in the world … there are a few people becoming interested now," Ms Lloyd said.

"I think that's because these fantastic little cameras are taking really great photos of slime moulds."

At her latest estimation, Ms Lloyd had about 1,700 matchboxes full of slime mould, representing about 120 species.

There are about 120 known species of slime mould in Tasmania. ( Supplied: Sarah Lloyd )

She said she also sends species duplicates to the National Herbarium of Victoria for study by researchers around the world.

"In terms of consistent work at a single location, I think I'm the only person doing that sort of work in Tasmania and certainly in Australia," Ms Lloyd said.

"They're very delicate. I put them in the match boxes and I labelled them with the name, date and location, then take them back home and mount them on a little piece of card.

"Once they're mounted, they'll stay like that indefinitely.