Black-velvet Leatherleaf Slug (Angustipes ameghini)
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Although there are several species of native slugs in the Austin area, the one most often encountered in the Prehistoric Garden is an introduced species from Paraguay. It was first reported in the U.S. around 1960 and has established populations in several southern states. Rather than being velvet-like, this slug's skin is more reminiscent of wet old tire rubber that has been in the sun too long.
Slugs are closely related to land snails, but simply don't have an external shell. The black-velvet leatherleaf is one of the most primitive of all slugs, with features like a mantle that covers its entire body, eyes that cannot be retracted in the same way as more advanced slugs, an anus at the back end (believe it or not, it is more modern for slugs to have their excretory openings near their head!), and a posterior lung with breathing pore located under the mantle behind the foot.
Like all slugs, this species requires moisture, although it can survive through dry periods by holing up in a secure, cool place. When the slug is disturbed, it retracts its eyes and flattens its body, looking very much like the "leatherleaf" part of its name (see photo below).
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Slugs are hermaphrodites, which means that each individual is both a male and a female. When they mate, the slugs fertilize each other, using a white pointed structure that extends out of their head. They seem to just push it into the side of the other slug, as seen in the photo below.
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class: Gastropoda / order: Systellommatophora / family: Veronicellidae / genus: Angustipes / species: ameghini
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