544: SciiAKFF — On the Slugs of Ireland. 



Reproduction. — I found the eggs of the typical A. subfuscus commonly at 

 Rahcny, near Dublin, at the end of August, and the species also bred freely in 

 captivity. The eggs were mostly about 3 mm. long by 2^ mm. broad, and semi- 

 transparent, much clearer than those of A. ater. Similar eggs, but rather smaller, viz. 

 2^ mm. by 2 mm. were deposited in captivity by the variety shown in fig. 18. The 

 eggs number generally about twenty in a cluster, and were seen from the middle 

 of August to the middle of October. The young forms were not observed, and I 

 have not sufficient data to express an opinion as to its limits of age. 



Habitat. — I have taken the typical form of this species very abundantly at 

 Raheny, Co. Dublin.* They were found in fields close to the sea where horses 

 were kept and fungi abounded in autumn. Wherever there was any horse-manure, 

 numbers of A. subfuscus were sure to be close by. But I also got them under 

 decaying heaps of weeds in another field in the neighbourhood. 



The difference between those found among the manure, and those occurring 

 among the weeds, first drew my attention to the absence of yellow in the skin of 

 these slugs, the colour being entirely due to the mucus. Those found among tlie 

 weeds secreted hardly any of the yellow mucus, and being white with gray backs, 

 differed at first sight very much from the vividly-coloured specimens found 

 previously. 



The first variety (fig. 18) was found in a small pine wood on Howth Hill, near 

 Dublin, about 300 feet above the fields referred to. Similar specimens were 

 obtained on Bray Head, in the Co. Wicklow, and, along with the variety fig. 19, 

 at Killakee in the Dublin Mountains. 



Food. — These slugs seem almost entirely to subsist on fungi, chiefly of the 

 genus Russula ; but they do not despise the poisonous Agaricus miiscarius, which 

 proves deadly to flies and other insects. I once observed two specimens eat a 

 fallen poplar leaf in a wood, although plenty of fungi were quite close to them ; 

 but it was only after some days that specimens in captivity gnawed at the green 

 leaves of Campanula. Simroth (38) found them, especially in the north of Ger- 

 many, feeding on all kinds of fungi, and observes that they never colour spirit 

 green, which proves that they do not live on chlorophyllaceous food. 



Kew (17) saw A. subfuscus devour a dead specimen of its own species, and also 

 an Amalia marginata (= carinata). In cajitivity, he observes, they eat bread and 

 leaves of lettuce freely, also the leaves of Solamim dulcamara when decomposing. 

 A fungus {Phallus imjmdicus) was eaten voraciously, but the slugs then died, 

 probably owing to the foetid smell given off by it. 



General Distribution. — Great Britain, continental Europe (except Spain and 

 Portugal), Iceland, and Greenland (?). 



* I also found it at GlengariiJ, Co. Kerry. 



