Star jelly

Star jelly, also known as astromyxin or astral jelly, is a gelatinous substance found mostly on grass and occasionally on tree branches. Folklore says it falls to Earth during meteor showers. It appears as a translucent or grayish-white jelly that usually evaporates soon after it "falls." Reports of the substance go back to the 14th century and continue today.

Various explanations have been proposed. Some say it comes from the remains of frogs, toads, or worms; others suggest it is colonies of cyanobacteria, the fruiting bodies of jelly fungi, or masses of amoeba called slime molds. Nonbiological origins include industrial byproducts or waste management materials.

Reports of star jelly span centuries. The 14th-century physician John of Gaddesden wrote about *stella terrae* (Latin for "star of the earth"), describing it as a mucilaginous substance on the ground that might treat abscesses. A 14th-century Latin medical glossary lists *uligo* as "a certain fatty substance emitted from the earth, that is commonly called 'a star which has fallen'." An English-Latin dictionary from around 1440 includes *sterre slyme*, with the Latin *assub* (from Arabic *ash-shuhub*, used for a shooting star). In Welsh, it is called *pwdre ser*, meaning "rot from the stars." In 1910, T. M. Hughes noted in *Nature* that the jelly seemed to "grow out from among the roots of grass." The Oxford English Dictionary lists many other names, including star-fallen, star-falling, star-shot, star-slime, star-slough, star-slubber, star-spurt, and star-slutch. In Veracruz, Mexico, the slime mold *Enteridium lycoperdon* is called *caca de luna* ("moon's feces").

Scientific analysis offers several theories. Observations in Scotland suggest star jelly may be spawn jelly from frogs or toads, vomited by predators. The German terms *Sternenrotz* (star snot) and *Meteorgallerte* (meteorite jelly) refer to digested frog spawn vomited by predators. Another theory is that it comes from glands in the oviducts of frogs and toads, which swell when eaten by birds or mammals, leaving a jellylike mass sometimes called otter jelly. Scientists commissioned by the National Geographic Society tested samples from the United States but found no DNA.