Bug Wiki
Bug Wiki / All bugs / Snails, slugs and worms
Sticker of Spanish slug
Bug card No. 1264 of 1,500

Spanish slug

Arion vulgaris
Eats: PlantsSnails, slugs and wormsGardens and meadowsNo legsNot an insect, but a bug cousin

The Spanish slug is a big, slimy slug with no shell, usually brick red or orange brown. It glides along on one big foot and leaves a trail of slime. Gardeners do not like it, because it eats lots of plants.

Fun fact: this one is not an insect at all, it has no legs! But kids find it on every bug hunt, so it lives in Bug Wiki too.
Lives in
Most of Europe, and now also parts of Asia, Canada and Mexico, in gardens and fields
Length
6 to 14 cm (2.4 to 5.5 in)
Top speed
about 0.03 km/h (0.02 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless to people. Wash your hands after touching one, because of the slime.
What does it eat?
It eats garden plants and crops, and when there are many of them they can do a lot of damage.
For real!Photo of Spanish slug
Picture by Xauxa Håkan Svensson. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How long is it?

Spanish slug about 14 cm long (5.5 in)A crayon about 9 cm (3.5 in)A banana about 18 cm (7.1 in)A house cat about 50 cm (20 in)
as long as 4 toy building bricks in a rowabout as long as your handneeds 2 minutes to cross a dinner table

How big is Spanish slug compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

It lives for only about one year. The grown-ups appear in summer and die before winter.

2

It can be yellow, red, brown or even black, but brick red is the most common colour.

3

It reached Estonia in 2008 and has spread to almost every country in Europe since the 1950s.

4

For many years scientists called it by the wrong name, because it looks almost exactly like another slug from Portugal.

5

When there are lots of them in one place, they can be a real problem for farmers and gardeners.

you asked

Most asked questions about Spanish slug

?Why is the Spanish slug a problem?

It spreads fast, can live in big numbers and eats garden plants and crops.

?How big is a Spanish slug?

A grown-up is about 6 to 14 centimetres long.

?Is the Spanish slug dangerous to people?

No. It is harmless to people, but it is a big pest in gardens.

Myth buster

Myth: The Spanish slug came from Spain in boxes of vegetables.

Truth: Probably not. That is an old, wrong story. It is actually rare in Spain, and it may first come from France or Spain, but nobody knows for sure.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Arion vulgaris
Named by
Moquin-Tandon, 1855
Group
Snails, slugs and worms
Family
Arionidae
Classification
Gastropoda > Stylommatophora > Arionidae
Lives on
Europe, Asia, North America
Also known as
Lusitanian slug, Iberian slug, Killer slug

Where the facts come from

  1. Spanish slug (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Xauxa Håkan Svensson. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@bugwiki.app and we will fix it.

More from the same group: Snails, slugs and worms

Garden snailSnails, slugs and wormsGiant African land snailSnails, slugs and wormsLeopard slugSnails, slugs and wormsBladder snailSnails, slugs and wormsMedicinal leechSnails, slugs and wormsCommon earthwormSnails, slugs and worms

Also at home here: Gardens and meadows

Queensland fruit flyFlies and mosquitoesAnt woodlouseWoodliceRose aphidTrue bugs and cicadasBrassica bugTrue bugs and cicadasOriental mole cricketGrasshoppers and cricketsBowl and doily spiderSpiders