Salute to Slugs

It's time for my promised salute to slugs.  (This one's for you, Jean!)  You can think of slugs as snails without a shell.  I know when they've been around because they leave slimy little trails on my patio the next morning.  They use these trails to find the same feeding spot each night and the mucus excreted by their foot helps them move more easily.  Slugs need a moist environment to survive and the thick mucus that covers their whole body helps keep them moist.  (You could also think of slugs as the okra of the gastropod family!)  I've seen them at dusk as they tend to come out at night and will go after any cat food crumbs. They can also be seen on a rainy day.

Source:  rv-orchidworks.com

Some slugs are carnivorous and will eat other smaller slugs or earthworms. They also use the slime trails to hunt other slugs.  Some slugs will eat living plants and can be a pest in the garden and to agricultural crops, but may also eat plants we consider weeds.  Many slugs eat fungus (like mushrooms) and decaying leaves and vegetable matter so are beneficial for recycling these materials.  Slugs have both male and female reproductive organs so both slugs can lay eggs after mating.

Leopard slug  Source: www.fcps.edu

There are about 40 different types of slugs in the U.S.  Common predators are toads, birds, and turtles. Their slimy covering helps make them harder for predators to pick up and can also be distasteful.  Gee, do you think?  Some people may think of them as pests, but I think they're kind of cool in a way, even if they are slimy.

I just realized I'm putting this post up on Election Day!  Hmmm.  While I don't think ALL politicians are snake oil salesmen, there are certainly a fair share who've left a slimy trail behind them!