Slugs
Published on February 5, 2026
The simplest description is that slugs are snails without shells. Some of these mollusks do, in fact, have a shell, but those that do have internalized the shell and use it to store minerals. Like snails, slugs secrete a film of mucus to protect their delicate skin and to “grease” the surface on which they are traveling.
Slugs are considered a major agricultural pest, and, according to some sources, a single acre of farmland can support nearly a quarter of a million slugs! That means even a small garden is likely to house thousands of them.