Detailed information on Banana Slug (Ariolimax columbianus)

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Strever

Hiouchi, CA (Zone 8b) | July 2011 | Negative

these animals do not prefer dead plants as some people think
they prefer & destroy the live plants in my garden
which is why they are destroyed on sight

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alaskanray

John Day, OR | June 2011 | Positive

Tenakee Springs, Alaska has several different species of slug and the banana slugs there get huge! I have personally seen one about 18" long...I at first thought it was a snake but then realized I was in Alaska and we have no snakes there.

These are beautiful creatures and nature's composters. I doubt seriously any reports of damage by these babies as they do, indeed, prefer dead material to live stuff. They can be found where the moisture and humus abound, usually in the woods, not the gardens.

While there are species that do damage to live plants, I don't think these babies are one of them. I fell in love with them when visiting Tenakee. They are gentle creatures and essential to a healthy ecosystem.

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vanislandgirl

Ladysmith, BC | October 2009 | Neutral

I see them alot in the different woods and forests here on the island. As long as they are not in my garden they can live

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PlantGirl1982

Cedar Rapids, IA (Zone 5a) | May 2007 | Neutral

While they are a curious creature, they do wreck havoc on nursery stock. We dont really have slugs in Iowa that get that big, but I have had plenty of experiences with them. I use to work at a very large plant nursery where we got most of our stock in from Monrovia in Visalia, CA. We had snakes and all kinds of stuff come in on our trucks. We had a rather large banana slug come in with some hostas or so we think one time. We saw it once and let it be. About a month later we found it again about 300 yards from where we had seen it before and it had grown even more and it had caused considerable damage on much of our hostas and other broadleaves. It might have had a cousin, we might have had more than one but it was so funny seeing the slug not too far but far enough away a month late... read more

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lizo7

El Cerrito, CA | May 2007 | Positive

My impression is that banana slugs prefer to eat decaying plant matter more than living plants. They are near my house, in redwood groves, but not actually in my yard, so I can't say for sure. I do know that once I brought one into my office to show people. I had scooped it up on a thin piece of cardboard. After I had solicited the proper amount of ohhs, ahhs and ughhhhs I took it back outside to set it free under the redwoods and it had eaten a significant amount of the cardboard while I had been carrying it around!

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palmbob

Acton, CA (Zone 8b) | July 2006 | Positive

I can be 'positive' about this creature as it is NOT a pest in my garden (I live in southern California)... but it might be a serious pest if you live in the Pacific Northwest, where it is native to, from N California up to Alaska. It is one of the world's largest slugs (up to nearly 10" long) and looks vaguely like a banana. I have seen these in the forests right around Portland, and in Santa Cruz (where it is the UC Santa Cruz school mascot). I have found them on trails eating a leaf, and you can actually hear the munching (thank goodness the local slugs in my garden don't have teeth that large). Fascinating creatures- hemaphorditic, yet still need to mate (not sure who choses to be boy or girl).

Banana Slug

Ariolimaxcolumbianus

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