slug
Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a smal ...
s in the family
Limacidae
Limacidae, also known by their common name the keelback slugs, are a taxonomic family of medium-sized to very large, air-breathing land slugs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the superfamily Limacoidea.
Distribution
The distr ...
, the keelback slugs. The genus is distributed in Europe and North Africa.Genus summary for ''Lehmannia'' AnimalBase, last modified 24 July 2007, accessed 8 April 2012.
Description
These are narrow-bodied slugs up to 8 centimeters long. The mantle covers less than a third of the body length. They are cream-colored to brown or black, usually with at least two longitudinal stripes along the mantle. The sole of the foot is lightest in the middle. The
penis
A penis (plural ''penises'' or ''penes'' () is the primary sexual organ that male animals use to inseminate females (or hermaphrodites) during copulation. Such organs occur in many animals, both vertebrate and invertebrate, but males do n ...
is short compared to those of ''
Limax
''Limax'' is a genus of air-breathing land slugs in the terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk family Limacidae.
The generic name ''Limax'' literally means "slug".
Some species, such as the leopard slug (''L. maximus'') and the tawny garden ...
'', and in shape it may be "tubular, baggy, or claviform" (club-shaped). The
mucus
Mucus ( ) is a slippery aqueous secretion produced by, and covering, mucous membranes. It is typically produced from cells found in mucous glands, although it may also originate from mixed glands, which contain both serous and mucous cells. It is ...
is watery.
Biology
Many species live in mountain habitat, where they can be found on trees and rocks and feed on
lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Ambigolimax
''Ambigolimax'' is a genus of air-breathing land slugs in the family Limacidae, the keelback slugs. There is still ongoing disagreement whether it is more appropriate to consider ''Ambigolimax'' as merely a subgenus of ''Lehmannia''; the eviden ...
'', as some phylogenies based on DNA sequences suggest is appropriate. The following list defines ''Lehmannia'' in the broad sense (
sensu lato
''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...
), but indicates which species have been placed in ''Ambigolimax'':Species in genus ''Lehmannia'' AnimalBase, accessed 12 August 2009.
* '' Lehmannia brunneri'' (H. Wagner, 1931)
* ''
Lehmannia horezia
''Lehmannia'' is a genus of air-breathing land slugs in the family Limacidae, the keelback slugs. The genus is distributed in Europe and North Africa.Lehmannia carpatica'' Hutchinson, Reise & Schlitt, 2022
* '' Lehmannia islandica'' Forcart, 1966
* ''
Lehmannia janetscheki
''Lehmannia'' is a genus of air-breathing land slugs in the family Limacidae, the keelback slugs. The genus is distributed in Europe and North Africa.Lehmannia jaroslaviae
''Lehmannia'' is a genus of air-breathing land slugs in the family Limacidae, the keelback slugs. The genus is distributed in Europe and North Africa.Lehmannia macroflagellata'' Grossu et Lupu, 1962
* ''
Lehmannia marginata
''Lehmannia marginata'' is a species of air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Limacidae. Sometimes classified in the genus ''Limax'', the species is distinct in its ecology, and its nearly transpare ...
Lehmannia melitensis
''Lehmannia melitensis'' is a species of air-breathing land slug, a shell-less pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Limacidae.
Distribution
The distribution of this species includes Malta and Italy (Sicily, Aeolian Islands, Sardinia
...
'' (Lessona & Pollonera, 1882) = ''Ambigolimax melitensis'' according to
* ''Lehmannia parvipenis'' = ''
Ambigolimax parvipenis
''Ambigolimax parvipenis'' is a species of air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the Limacidae.
Taxonomy
''Ambigolimax parvipenis'' was first clearly characterised in 2014, based on specimens from the British ...
Ambigolimax valentianus
''Ambigolimax valentianus'' (also known as ''Lehmannia valentiana'') is a species of air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of inver ...
'' – Valencia slug, threeband garden slug
* ''
Lehmannia vrancensis
''Lehmannia'' is a genus of air-breathing land slugs in the family Limacidae, the keelback slugs. The genus is distributed in Europe and North Africa.Ambigolimax waterstoni
''Ambigolimax waterstoni'' is a species of air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc in the family Limacidae.
Taxonomy
This is one of the several species formerly confused under the name ''Limax nyctelius'' and later ' ...
'' Hutchinson, Reise & Schlitt, 2022
Note that the name ''Lehmannia nyctelia'' (= ''
Ambigolimax nyctelius
The name ''Ambigolimax nyctelius'' (and similarly ''Lehmannia nyctelia'' and ''Limax nyctelius'') has been used to refer to several species of air-breathing land slugs (terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs) in the family Limacidae. An articl ...
Letourneuxia
''Letourneuxia'' is a genus of large air-breathing land slugs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the family Arionidae, the roundback slugs.
Species
This genus is monotypic, containing the single species
* ''Letourneuxia nyctelia'' (Bo ...
'', but the name has been mistakenly applied to three of the species listed above (''L. carpatica'', ''A. parvipenis'' and ''A. waterstoni'').