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leopard slug

Limax maximus

Photo by Leuba Ridgway
Published on Project Noah
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-37.894, 145.311

Field Notes

Description:

Leopard slugs mating ritual

slugs were about 5 inches long

Habitat:

suburban garden. After rains.

Notes:

Spotted around 10 pm in the back yard.

slugs trailed each other for about 30 mins. I then found them intertwined hanging from a mucus thread.

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (7)
AntónioGinjaGinja
great cache Leuba,your first :) great spotting page,very professional work,thanks for sharing congratulations
KarenL
Very interesting spot! Welcome to Project Noah Leuba!
Mark Ridgway
No trace because one slug falls off to the ground and the other goes up and reabsorbs the cord. ChunXingWong - you really should try to find video of this process - it's a complex but spectacular sequence taking an hour or so.
Leuba Ridgway
thank you ChunXingWong. This is an amazing ritual and so graceful despite their size. You see no trace of the mucus thread after the process!
ChunXingWong
Amazing, I have never seen slugs mating before. I never knew such thin mucus thread can support both of their weight. By the way, welcome to the Noah community.
Photographed
PublishedNovember 27, 2011

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