Great Grey Slug

Taxobox
name = Great Grey Slug

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image_caption = "Limax maximus"
image_width = 250px
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Mollusca
classis = Gastropoda
ordo = Pulmonata
familia = Limacidae
genus = "Limax"
species = "L. maximus"
binomial = "Limax maximus"
binomial_authority = Linnaeus, 1758The Great Grey Slug, "Limax maximus" (literally, "great slug"), also known as the Tiger slug or the Spotted leopard slug, is one of the largest kinds of keeled slug (Limax cinereoniger being the largest). The species is noted for its dark-spotted pale-grey body and the short keel on its tail. These nocturnal animals can grow to be as long as 8 inches (20 cm), feeding mostly on rotting plant matter and fungi. They live for up to three years and are inactive during the winter.

Mating

The mating habits of "Limax maximus" are considered unusual among slugs: the hermaphrodite slugs court, usually for hours, by circling and licking each other. After this, the slugs will climb into a tree or other high area and then, entwined together, lower themselves on a thick string of mucus, evert their white translucent mating organs (penises) from their gonopores (openings on the right side of the head), entwine these organs, and exchange sperm. Both participants will later lay hundreds of eggs.

A commonly seen practice among many slugs is apophallation, when one or both of the slugs chews off the other's penis. The penis of these species is curled like a cork-screw and often becomes entangled in their mate's genitalia in the process of exchanging sperm. When all else fails, apophallation allows the slugs to separate themselves. Once its penis has been removed, a slug is still able to participate in mating subsequently, but only using the female parts of its reproductive system.

The tiny slugs which emerge from the eggs need at least two years to reach sexual maturity. [ [http://webs.lander.edu/rsfox/invertebrates/limax.html "Limax maximus"] , Invertebrate Anatomy OnLine, Lander University.]

Photographs of mating:

Distribution

Native to Europe, the slugs have been introduced to Northern America and occur along the East and West sides of that continent. The slugs are almost always found near human habitation — usually in lawns, gardens, cellars or in other damp areas.

* Czech Republic
* Bulgaria
* Lithuania - vulnerable
* Netherlands
* Poland
* Slovakia
* and others

Health Risks

A meningitis-causing nematode, "Angiostrongylus cantonensis", which normally infests the lungs of rats, has a larval stage requiring it to live in mollusks, including slugs. Previously, the worm had only been known to be a problem in tropical areas but has since moved to other regions. Live slugs accidentally eaten with improperly cleaned vegetables (such as lettuce), or improperly cooked slugs (for use in recipes requiring larger slugs such as banana slugs), can act as a vector for a parasitic infection. [Sanjaya N. Senanayake, Don S. Pryor, John Walker & Pam Konecny (2003) [http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/179_08_201003/sen10389_fm.html First report of human angiostrongyliasis acquired in Sydney] . - The Medical Journal of Australia, 179 (8): 430-431.] [cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/health/HealthRepublish_969551.htm |title=Man's brain infected by eating slugs |date=20 October 2003]

See also

* Yellow Slug
* Banana slug

References

* " [http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/index.php?section=environment:species:invertebrate&id=182 The Wildlife Trusts] "; retrieved March 26, 2005.
* Stuart M. Bennett, 2000; [http://www.the-piedpiper.co.uk/th11a(2).htm Great Grey Slugs] ; retrieved March 26, 2005.

* Michael P. Kerney & R.A.D. Cameron, 1979, "A field guide to the land snails of Britain and north-west Europe", Collins, Glasgow.

External links

* [http://www.bioimages.org.uk/HTML/R155372.HTM Images of the Great Grey Slug]
* [http://oregonstate.edu/Dept/nurspest/Limaxmaximuscourtship.htm Images of two "Limax maximus" mating]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRcdaMY2cGI Video of two "Limax maximus" mating]