Banana Slug Sightings in the Forest of Big Basin State Park

Text by Joan Zimmerman, Ph.D.
All photos (c) 2002-2003 Scott Peden, Photographer and Docent at Big Basin State Park, local plant expert and nature guide

Field Guide to the Slug : Explore the Secret World of Slugs and Their Kin - In Forest, Fields, and Gardens from Southeast Alaska to California, by Western Society of Malacologists, David G. Gordon.	Forest and Tree Home, Glossary pages: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z.
Support us - buy at Amazon!	Check out the current hottest books on trees and forests.

Now revealed: the secret lives of banana slugs (Ariolimax dolichophallus) (which are also the exuberant mascot of the University of California Santa Cruz) in the California Redwoods Forests of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Note that this is not A. columbianus, which is sometimes spotted brown, but the bright yellow A. dolichophallus, which (and presumably to the students' delight) lives up to its name by having a long male organ.

Banana slugs are seen every month from the Berry Creek Falls 11-mile loop trail through the redwoods of the Santa Cruz Mountains, with peaks of about 200 banana slugs in May and November.

Can you beat our records in our Slug and flower counters?

Here, at Slug Central, see some of the best and the brightest banana slugs photographed by Scott Peden from hikes on this trail. Access other wildflower and slug photos in Scott's on-line portfolio, using these instructions.

The littlest and the largest slugs. (Takes a moment to download.)

How the large slugs create the little slugs. (Marvelous photos - well worth the download time!)

Survivalist slugs. (Take the time to download these unusual photos.)

Books on Slugs

Field Guide to the Slug Explore the Secret World of Slugs and Their Kin - In Forest, Fields, and Gardens from Southeast Alaska to California, by Western Society of Malacologists, David G. Gordon.

Banana Slug: A Close Look at a Giant Forest Slug of Western North America by Alice Bryant Harper, Daniel Harper (Photographer).

Thanks to the trail crews for their trail repairs. Without their work, there would not be a trail and there would not be this web page. Thanks so much for such a great job!

See also these pages

Reports of sightings on this Trail:
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December.

And 2001 archives: September, October, November, December.

• Articles - Our Index
• Some more hiking suggestions from George Wuerthner.
• Coast Redwood : A Natural and Cultural History. Editors Michael G. Barbour, et al.
• South Bay Trails: Outdoor Adventures in & Around Santa Clara Valley: From the Diablo Range to the Pacific Ocean by Jean Rusmore, Frances Spangle, Betsy Crowder.
• Peninsula Trails: Outdoor Adventures on the San Francisco Peninsula by Jean Rusmore, Frances Spangle, Betsy Crowder.
• Foghorn Outdoors: 101 Great Hikes of the San Francisco Bay Area by Ann Marie Brown.

Support us in bringing information to you - buy at Amazon!

Forest and Tree Home, Glossary pages: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z.

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Check our disclaimer. Text Copyright © 2002-2005 by Joan Zimmerman, Ph.D. Photos Copyright © 2002-2003 by Scott Peden. The moral and intellectual property rights to the photos are asserted by Scott Peden. None of the photos referenced on this page may be reproduced without permission of Scott Peden.