A Nailsworth gardener was left flabbergasted after spotting a leopard slug in his back garden.
Lee Thomas couldn’t believe his eyes after watching the colourful slug stuck to his fence: “I’ve never seen anything like it and it certainly didn’t look like your average slug.”
The leopard slug’s Latin name, Limax maximus, literally means “biggest slug”. The adult measures 10–20 cm (4–8 in) in length and is generally a light greyish or grey-brown with darker spots and blotches, although the colouration and exact patterning of the body of this slug species is quite variable.
At the front of the head are two pairs of tentacles. The top pair is used to sense light, and work as the eyes of the slug. The other pair is closer to the ground and are used to smell.
A common British species, they don’t damage healthy, living plants, but they do eat other slugs, including those that can damage garden plants and vegetables.
Slugs and snails flourish in rainy weather, resulting in sightings of far greater numbers.
