Arion silvaticus

The forest - slug ( Arion silvaticus ) is a nudibranch of the family of slugs ( Arionidae ) that is provided to the subordination of terrestrial snails ( gastropod ).

Description

The forest - slug measures extended in length about 3 to 4 cm. The back is ash-gray to gray- brown in color, often with each slightly darker spots. The shell plate is often a bit lighter, but with a darker central area. In addition, the edge of the mantle shield is usually dark limited. The lateral bandages are also darker than the back, and mainly limited to the sole bright sharp. The antennae are dark brown. The mucus is colorless. The pups are light blue -gray with a bright topline. At rest, the animals often sit fold spread.

Life, the occurrence and distribution

The species lives mainly of fallen leaves. Main habitat are deciduous forests in hilly and mountainous landscapes. In the north of its range the species occurs also in bog and heath forests. The forest slug is spread over almost all of Europe except for the Mediterranean region. In the southeast, the range extends to Bulgaria, in the north to northern Norway and the south coast of Iceland. The species is now at least deported even after North America.

System

The independence of the three species Arion fasciatus ( Nilsson, 1823) ( Gelbstreifige slug ), Arion silvaticus Lohmander, 1937 (forest slug ) and Arion circumscriptus Johnston, 1828 ( Grey Slug ) was provided by Sofie Geenen and co-authors in question in 2006. They found neither in the genital anatomy nor in the DNA studies consistent differences for the three species. The differences in coloration they lead to the establishment of color options back through long periods of self-fertilization. If confirmed, these results would Arion silvaticus ( Lohmander, 1937) and Arion circumscriptus ( Johnston, 1828) junior synonyms of Arion fasciatus ( Nilsson, 1823). All three species are found in which some authors did not use sub-genus Arion ( Arion Carin ) (Hesse, 1926).

Differences

The closely related Gelbstreifige slug ( A. fasciatus ) differs by the yellowish color of the forest slug. In contrast, the gray slug has more blue-gray shades.