A seven-foot-tall, slime-covered heap of putrefying protoplasm slithers across the floor on its tentacles. These harbour putrefying organisms which may overwhelm the fermentation. The eggs are laid among putrefying organic materials such as hay, manure, and wood. Putrefying bacteria are bacteria involved in putrefaction of living matter. Putrefying bacteria use amino acids or urea as an energy source to decompose dead organisms.