Australians are baffled by the mystery of a strange red “spot” growing under a city fire hydrant, and even experts have no idea what it is.
- A red mass has caused a stir
- Has grown over a fire hydrant
- Some speculate that it is from a science fiction movie.
A mysterious red mass has spread around a fire hydrant, leaving people wondering if the slimy lump is something out of a ‘War of the Worlds’ movie.
The strange growth first noticed in a residential car park in Brisbane’s CBD last October has been climbing towards the mouth of the leaking hydrant.
The red stain has expanded from the ground, first taking on a rusty color before taking on a green and black appearance as it took over the connecting water supply.
The images were posted on social media this week and captioned: “This thing has been growing under a leaking fire hydrant for the last few months (QLD).”
They were from a friend of the original poster who said the hydrant started leaking a year ago in a place where there was a 20 cm high rock.
The red patch expanded from the ground (pictured) and turned a rusty color as it grew
The strange growth first noticed in a residential car park in Brisbane’s CBD last October has been climbing towards the mouth of the leaking hydrant.
It turned a darker color before taking on a green and black appearance when it took over the connecting water supply.
The images (pictured, the unusual growth) were posted on social media this week and captioned: “This thing has been growing under a leaking fire hydrant for the last few months (QLD).”
“We tried to turn it off ourselves, but we couldn’t. We communicated with the owners and the town hall, but no one came to turn it off,” the friend said of the leak.
‘Eventually, the fungus on the rock grew until it reached the inside of the hydrant…then someone removed the rock and it was all gone.
“But the leak continued and after a week or two a new fungus appeared in the soil. That’s when I started taking pictures of it, knowing it would grow back.”
The red growth took off, rising and changing to black and green colors as it reached the mouth of the hydrant again.
The updated images showed some plant life with aphids and a ladybug perched on the formation.
“They look like those red veins from Tom Cruise’s War of the Worlds movie,” said one commenter.
“I love the dedication to documenting its…evolution,” said another.
It reminds me of the muppets. The chef who has to fight spaghetti,” wrote a third.
“It’s the mushroom from the original Super Mario Bros. movie,” joked a fourth.
But it also sparked a serious debate about what it was.
‘It doesn’t look like a fungus, the fibers are too large to be mycelium but too fine to be a coraloid fruiting body. Maybe a mass of roots or something,” one suggested.
“That doesn’t look like a fungus, it looks more like some type of mold or bacteria,” wrote another.
The updated images showed some plant life with aphids and a ladybug perched on the formation.
“I love the dedication to documenting its…evolution,” one social media commenter said of the image library (pictured here is an updated photo of the fire hydrant overcome by mass).
‘A friend of mine had something like this growing under his house where a pipe was leaking. He described it as a giant mushroom! one more said.
Experts from the Queensland Museum, the Queensland Herbarium and the CSIRO contacted by Yahoo News Australia they couldn’t tell what it was because they needed a sample to get more information.
Some on social media came up with the idea of taking a sample to a scientific lab for testing, but others were happy to do their own research.
‘I am disgusted but at the same time fascinated at the same time. I feel the need to poke him with a very long stick,’ they wrote.
