What’s new?
23 October 2009
THE SEARCH IS ON FOR….SLUGS!
They may not be everyone’s cup of tea but The Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and Peterborough is urging families to have a root around in the leaf litter this autumn to track down slugs….
But it’s not just any slugs we’re looking for – a brightly coloured specimen has so far eluded the sights of local slug seekers.
The Lemon Slug (Limax tenellus) is a rare, small, bright yellow British slug with dark purplish tentacles that feeds on woodland fungi. You’ll have to look carefully – It is only about one inch (2.5cm) in length.
It has been found in Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire to the south of our area and Norfolk, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire to the north but there has never been a sighting in our three counties. We want to change that with our Search For A Slug!
Brian Eversham, Conservation Director and slug enthusiast said, “It is likely that Lemon Slugs are finding homes in the woodlands of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire but none have ever been recorded. I would like to lay down a challenge to any adventurous types in the area to search out the Lemon Slug. Autumn is the best time to find them as they eat fungi found in ancient woodlands so great places to start your search would be Old Sulehay, near Peterborough, Kings Wood, near Leighton Buzzard and Gamlingay or Brampton Woods in Cambridgeshire.”
We are asking the public to tell us where and when they have seen the Lemon Slug, what it was doing and if possible to send us a photograph.
ENDS
For more information or to report a sighting of the Lemon Slug please contact Bernadette Mooney, Communications Officer on 01954 713551 or email bernadette.mooney@wildlifebcnp.org
Notes to Editors:
Bringing people together to take action for wildlife is the Trust’s mission. We manage 129 nature reserves - all of them free to visit – and 95% of the population live within five miles of one of our reserves. We are working to make these wildlife havens bigger, better and more joined-up – vital to help wildlife to adapt to a changing climate. By gathering valuable information about wildlife and working with other landowners the Trust also monitors and safeguards wildlife beyond the boundary of its reserves.
For more information see www.wildlifebcnp.org