Leopard Slug = Gardeners Friend
By green_finger
19 comments
Really? You may well ask. This was news to me too that I only recently discovered so I thought others might like to know what I found out.
This was pretty much my view of all slugs but please read on as not all slugs are public enemy numero uno.
These are Leopard slugs. They are a gardener’s friend. They don’t damage healthy, living plants, but they do eat other slugs, including species that can damage garden plants and vegetables. By eating dead and rotting plants, as well as fungi, Leopard Slugs recycle nutrients and fertilise the soil.
They need to keep their bodies damp in order to breathe, so are usually found in dark, damp places, particularly among rotting logs.
They are hermaphrodites, meaning that each slug has both male and female sexual organs. They still need to mate with another individual though and have quite a spectacular way of doing this. The two slugs climb a tree or other structure, then hang from a branch on a thick strand of mucus, intertwined with one another. After mating, each slug lays clutches of transparent, round eggs in damp places.
ID: Up to 16cm long when fully grown
Brown or grey, with brown or black spots/blotches
Front of body has marbled pattern of spots (never stripes)
Back of body has up to three dark stripes on each side
– dark stripes may be broken up into a line of dots
Underneath (sole) is white
Their slime is particularly sticky & they can live for several years.
However, they can be confused with other slugs particularly this bad boy …..
This is the yellow slug, although I would describe it as more yellowy olive green.
It is a large slug which can grow up to 10cm in length. The body is marbled and mottled in an olive colour. Its tentacles are blue. It is common and widespread in England, Wales and Ireland. It is mostly associated with houses and gardens – being known to venture indoors especially cellars after dark. Feeds voraciously on seedlings and vegetables so where it does occur on agriculture and horticulture land it can do serious damage.
Of the 30 species of UK slugs there are four that are classed as pests; they are the netted or grey field slug, the garden slug, the keeled slug and the large black slug.
Here is a link to the slug watch ID page:
http://www.slugwatch.co.uk/?page_id=13
Scary facts:
Most slugs live underground and the ones that can be seen feeding above ground are only approximately 5% of the total slug population.
On average a UK garden is home to over 20,000 slugs and it is estimated that an acre of farmland can support over 250,000 slugs.
So nurture those Leopards as it looks like we could do with all the help we can get!
22 Jun, 2016
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Comments
Hi Mari , I've taken a photo of one in one of my plant pots , I'm finding it difficult to tell the difference ,I think its a baddy because its eating the leaves off the plant, I'll put a photo on would you do an ID please ? x
23 Jun, 2016
I could certainly try but I'm no expert. Did you have a look at the slugwatch id page, defra also has one.
'Britain is home to around 30 species of slug, and the good news is that only four are troublesome in the garden. The bad news is that those four are the most prolific!'
Garden, Field, Keel are the worst & most prolific.
Black slugs come in varying colours ranging from red and orange to brown, grey, and even white. The brown forms are often the younger slugs, becoming darker with maturity.
There's old saying:
If it’s black, put it back.
If it’s grey, keep it at bay.
I'm not so sure about that though!
23 Jun, 2016
Yes Mari I did look at slugwatch I'm beginning to get quite paranoid about slugs they're like Chameleons with their many different colours ,Yikes nasty slithery things ...I'm off to my photo to see what your verdict was !
23 Jun, 2016
Hi found this really interesting. My new garden has what seems like millions. Trouble is I have a stupid puppy, well 11 months that eats everything including slugs and snails. For this reason I have to admit that get rid of any I find. Can't put pellet down as he would probably eats those as well. Talked to the vet about it as worried about lungworm but she told me im in a clear area. I'm hoping as he gets older he might grown a brain. Jen
23 Jun, 2016
Would he prefer my cabbage plant over a dandelion weed? If I threw him over the hedge to my neighbor's side, would he find his way back to my vegetable patch - with a vengeance?
23 Jun, 2016
If I found a 16cm slug in the garden I might just retreat to the house....
Very interesting blog, thank you! Into Favourites for furure ref!
23 Jun, 2016
How interesting. I seem to find these between say stored plant pots but not certain they are all good slugs, I will look closer next time.
23 Jun, 2016
Amy, Jen, Stera & Dawn glad you found the info interesting, the Leopard is quite distinctive with its 3 stripes or broken lines.
Bathgate, don't believe he's that partial to cabbage but the small slugs def are & if you manage to avoid them then the pigeons & caterpillars will finish it off for you.
I do believe all pests have an inbuilt homing device unless they have to cross a river ......;)
Stera, there is an even bigger one, the Ashy-Grey slug is 25cm when fully grown. Hope I don't see one of those on my night stalkings :(
23 Jun, 2016
Mari look at my blog ! I'm hoping all the nasty slugs have drowned !
24 Jun, 2016
25cm...gosh that's nearly a snake...
24 Jun, 2016
Amy, if only it did drown the slugs it would almost be worth the deluge.
25 Jun, 2016
Talking of snakes, a grass snake was swimming in the pond the other day, yikes, I'm not a snake fan. Spiders Im fine with but snakes freak me out.
25 Jun, 2016
Heck, that would freak me out too, Dawn, but then so would a 25cm slug.
25 Jun, 2016
Well! You were about as slow as a slug getting back here again. Great to hear from you! Have you fully recovered from your fall?
26 Jun, 2016
LOL at Loose. You are right about that I was away from Jan to June. I'm still having physio but shoulder not so bad as nerve damage to leg.
26 Jun, 2016
Slugs can overrun a garden very quickly if you don't take care of the problem. There are many ways to deal with slugs in your garden.
- Make sure that your garden isn't actually attracting slugs to it.
- You may physically remove them.
- Take small jars and bury them into the soil. Add in yeast, sugar, and water or beer inside the jar. This attracts and gets rid of slugs.
- Consider using anti-slug powders in your garden. There are some like diatomaceous.
Slugs are highly toxic to our pet friends so if you notice slugs in your yard or garden you should take action immediately. Visit http://www.eg-exterminatorsnj.com/ for more info!
3 Nov, 2018
This is an ad for an firm in New Jersey
3 Nov, 2018
The good thing about it Stera is that it brought to the forefront again GF’s wonderful blog and the GOY’ers responses from 2016.
3 Nov, 2018
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A brilliant informative Blog Mari , The leopard Slug wasn't something I knew about until you mentioned it I had looked it up and read the facts I will definitely be on the lookout for our friendly slugs it looks to be quite hard to tell the difference the colour is something to look for ...Thanks for this x
23 Jun, 2016