it would be interesting to send a sample off to your local mycology lab, and get the answer once and for all. could be, as jerry said, a "sloughing" off of old leather treatment, or, it could be one of the many fungus types that grow as yeast at room temp. one reason i previously mentioned the danger of using oil on leather as a treatment is that it harbors both bacteria and fungus. Malassezia (pityrosporon) furfur is a fungus that infects skin. in the lab it grows as a white/tan yeast. part of the culturing process involves agar overlaid with olive oil (sterile olive oil is used in the lab.) it grows at 37 degrees C. but many other fungi do well at room temp, and grow as white, powdery yeast. saprophytic fungi are not typically disease producing, and are found in nature as molds on decaying food articles.
susan
|