Halfling

While looking through the slug/snail tub that has been overrun by babies, I noticed this little fellow:

My apologies for the poor quality of the picture, but it still makes the point. This little Deroceras baby is merely half a slug! His body stops at his mantle. It doesn't appear to be doing him any harm aside from making him comically short, nor do the others seem to be rejecting him. He behaves just like a normal slug.  He's as cute as a freaking button and I truly hope he grows up. I have a few stubby slugs of L. valentiana, but nothing like this little guy.

Due to the short lifespan and quick generations of Deroceras, I figured I'd see some mutations, but I never expected anything like this.

Babies!

When I was 16, my dad bought me a head lamp because I would be out in the back yard well after midnight hunting insects and spiders. To facilitate this, I would run down the batteries on his flashlights. This thing not only saved his flashlights from much use, abuse and batteries, but also allowed me to hunt hands-free.

I still have this head lamp and I've found it supremely convenient for viewing my slugs and snails, even in the daylight. It has also enabled me to see the new ambersnail hatchlings that have emerged! They're tinier than I ever thought possible- ten or more of them could fit on the head of a pin. As if that wasn't surprise enough, while I was changing the substrate in their parents' bin (another story entirely), I found five more clutches! The two adults have definitely been getting it on! Anyway, I managed to get a couple of photographs, even though I wasn't sure that my camera was capable of capturing something so small.

Succineid Expectations

When I found a single pair of ambersnails while in central Illinois, I had hoped very much that they would breed. I was not disappointed. Several days ago, I happened to catch them in the throes of slimy passion. When I went to check on the slugs and snails in that particular bin this morning, I was treated to another surprise:

A lovely little bundle of ambersnail eggs was nestled in the moss! At first, they just looked like an amorphous blob of clear goo, but as the hours passed, the individual eggs began to take shape. I can't wait until they hatch!