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It’s mating time for the Banana Slugs in the Monterey Pine Forest, on the Monterey Peninsula. On a 3 hour walk today, we saw 44 banana slugs, two pairs were mating, and 8 of them were (the spotted) Button’s Banana Slug. Link to Button's Banana Slug (Ariolimax buttoni): https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/190269771

Banana Slugs (Genus Ariolimax) Like many slugs, Banana Slugs are herbivores, eating a wide variety of mushrooms and plant material. At up to 10 inches long, they eat a lot. Banana Slugs play a significant role in seed dispersal. If you pick them up, sticky residual slime on hands is not easily washed off. These slugs are so well known for the relatively large size of their male genitals, that the Slender Banana Slug (Ariolimax dolichophallus) carries a name that literally means “long penis” (dolichophallus).

Everything you ever wanted to know about Banana Slug mating behavior: (Excellent blog with photos!)
The Romantic Lives of Banana Slugs:  https://openspacetrust.org/blog/banana-slug/

"Banana slugs are some of the largest terrestrial slugs on earth, reaching up to 260 mm (10.24 inches) when fully extended. . ."
Interesting and thorough study/comments regarding Banana Slugs by Thomas Everest:
Link: https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/32164-a-note-on-banana-slugs

California Banana Slug (Ariolimax californicus) Endemic in California, US: native and occurs nowhere else.
Conservation Status: Imperiled (N2) in United States (NatureServe). It is pure yellow or brownish-yellow in color without black spots.

Button's Banana Slug (Ariolimax buttoni) Conservation Status: Imperiled (N2N3) in United States.
It usually has a large rounded black spot "button-like" at top center of mantle and scattered, more irregularly shaped black spots on body. It is less neon yellow than other Ariolimax species in the region; it is more dull olive-brown-yellow with black spots.

Slender Banana Slug (Ariolimax dolichophallus) is a large, yellow, endemic slug that is found in shaded, moist Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) forest floor duff. The Slender Banana Slug is the school mascot for UCSC. Conservation Status: Imperiled (N2) in United States.
These slugs are so well known for the size of their male genitals that the Slender Banana Slug (Ariolimax dolichophallus) carries a name that literally means “long penis” (dolichophallus).

Pacific Banana Slug (Ariolimax columbianus) "are the second-largest slug in the world at up to 9.8 inches long, and one of the slowest species on the planet with a whopping maximum speed of 6.5 inches per minute. They get their name from their coloring, similar to that of a ripe banana although they’re frequently “overripe” with large, speckled brown spots. Complete with one lung and no spine, you can see why this brightly colored creature seems to take its sweet time moving around our redwood forests."
https://openspacetrust.org/blog/banana-slug/

. . . "Only Ariolimax columbianus and Ariolimax buttoni have spots, although these species can also be spotless (Mead, 1943; cf. Roth, 2004; cf. Leonard et al., 2007)" . . .

Pacific Banana Slug (Ariolimax columbianus) is a native banana slug that lives in damp, wooded areas in the Pacific Northwest, north of Leggett, California. It is the second largest land slug in the world.
http://www.bily.com/pnwsc/web-content/Land-Snails,Slugs.html

Project on I-Nat: Native Land Slugs of North America https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/native-land-slugs-of-north-central-and-south-america

(The) Monterey Pine Forest: Coastal California's Living Legacy, 2nd. ed, The Monterey Pine Forest Watch, 2018. (Excellent book)