ClodMesh artifacts when zooming out

I’m using AreaClodMesh and it sort of works…except for one annoying thing:  My mesh looks fine up close, but as I zoom out and the mesh starts getting simplified I see random holes appear and disappear. 



Is this a problem with my mesh or a limitation of the algorithm used for level of detail simplification?  Are there any strict mesh quality requirements for AreaClodMesh?  Has anyone else run into this problem?



Here’s a picture of the same mesh at varying levels of zoom from left (full triangle count)  to right (fewer triangles):





Your advice is highly appreciated!