Description
Slugs and snails are gastropod molluscs. They have a flat, slimy, muscular foot on which they move around and can travel along most surfaces including vertically and upside down.
Aotearoa New Zealand has about 1,400 native species of slugs and snails, many of which are endangered and unlikely to be encountered in a nursery or home garden. There are several introduced species of slugs and snails, many of which feed on plants. The common garden snail and grey field slug are more likely to be encountered. The common garden snail grows a shell up to 40 millimetres long.
Slugs and snails are nocturnal and are more active during damp or humid weather. During the day they hide in damp, dark places usually close to where they have been feeding. Slugs and snails eat fruit, flowers, soft stems, and foliage of plants.
Common native plant hosts
| Scientific names | Māori/common names |
|---|---|
| Clianthus | Kākābeak |
| Phormium tenax, Phormium cookianum | Flax, harakeke, wharariki, korari, swamp flax, mountain flax |
| Pittosporum spp. | Karo, tarata, lemonwood, kohukohu, black matipo, kōhūhū |
| Sophora spp. | Kōwhai |
Scientific names
Clianthus
Māori/common names
Kākābeak
Scientific names
Phormium tenax, Phormium cookianum
Māori/common names
Flax, harakeke, wharariki, korari, swamp flax,
mountain flax
mountain flax
Scientific names
Pittosporum spp.
Māori/common names
Karo, tarata, lemonwood, kohukohu, black matipo, kōhūhū
Scientific names
Sophora spp.
Māori/common names
Kōwhai
Symptoms and damage
- Defoliation.
- Holes in leaves.
- Plant stress.
- Silver slime trails.
- Snails also eat seeds.
Prevention and control tips
- Beer traps.
- Coarse sand on seed trays.
- Manual removal and destruction.
- Molluscicides.