Spanish Slug
Arion vulgaris
Their defense mucus is so sticky and bitter that it can temporarily glue a small predator's jaws shut, deterring them from eating the slug.
- Scientific name
- Arion vulgaris
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Mollusca › Gastropoda › Stylommatophora › Arionidae › Arion
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- increasing
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Deciduous forests, damp woodlands, gardens, agricultural fields, and grassy verges.
- Diet
- Omnivorous detritivore; consumes living plants, decaying organic matter, fungi, and animal carcasses.
- Range
- Europe, North America
- Size
- 7 to 15 cm in length
- Lifespan
- 1 year
- Active
- nocturnal
- Threats
- Drought, dry weather, molluscicides, and natural predators like ducks, hedgehogs, and ground beetles.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless to touch, but do not ingest. They can carry harmful parasites such as the rat lungworm. If handled, wash hands thoroughly with soap and water. Keep them away from agricultural crops and home gardens.
The Spanish slug , also known by its scientific name Arion vulgaris , more commonly known in English-speaking countries under the incorrectly applied Latin name Arion lusitanicus , is a species of air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Arionidae, the roundback slugs.
Photo: Drepanostoma, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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