A Slug

This morning we had a beautiful break from the searing heat we've been having. The temperature has been in the lower 90s, which may not seem that hot, but the humidity has been around 70%! That brings the heat index up pretty high. However, today we had a VERY welcome relief. It was in the lower 70s for the majority of the day. So this morning, I got outside to do some wildlife photography. 

However, I couldn't seem to find any wildlife! Other than butterflies and spiders, I really couldn't find anything. But then . . . I found a VERY fat slug! Unfortunately, I failed to identify him, but I did learn quite a bit about slugs.

(his eyes were retracted in this image. His head is the closer part in focus)

One very peculiar thing I noticed about this slug was that it had a hole on the right side of its head. I found out that this hole is called a pneumostome. It is basically a hole by which air enters into the slug's single lung. I was fascinated when I saw the hole because I wasn't sure if he was supposed to have it. I was afraid he was injured or something. It didn't seem right that I could see inside of him!

I spent twenty-five minutes observing and video taping this guy. I must admit I had never really taken the time to watch a slug, but they truly are AMAZING. They look like a wad of slimy mud, but they move, see, smell, breath, and do all of the other things normal living organisms do! 

But they do everything slowly . . .

In this video, you can see one of his eyes (specifically light sensors) pop into and out of his head. I read that if any of his sensory tentacles get cut off, he can re-grow them! Incredible.

Here you can see the slug eating. He is apparently eating a dead fungus on the wood. As I said, the upper two sensory tentacles are light sensors, but the lower two are different. They provide the slug with a sense of smell. They are essentially his "nose"!

Here you can see the whole video in fast-forward. It took a total of 25 minutes to film.

There are so many fascinating things about these "gross" animals. I had never really stopped to see them before, so this was truly amazing. How incredible to see the way God provided this creature with everything it needs in such a unique way. For example, he could never breath through his mouth, because it is constantly surrounded by mucus and slime. So God gave him a hole on the side of his head so that he could breath. Or take a look again at his "eyes" and "nose". How unique! They're retractable! Imagine having retractable eyes! How truly unique is this little slug, yet he is only a mirror of the uniqueness of his Creator. Who else has such creative power?