WEIRD & WILD Hot-Pink Slug Found in Australia This new species of 8-inch-long slug is found only on one mountain. The #pinkSlug is large for #Slugs reaching about eight inches in length. PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY MICHAEL MURPHY/NPWS By Carrie Arnold He's big. He's slimy. And he's … neon pink?! Meet Triboniophorus aff. graeffei, a new species of 8-inch-long slug that’s found only on one #AustralianMountain #Scientists already knew that a bright-pink slug lived on Mount Kaputar (map), thinking it was a variety of the red triangle slug, a species common along the east coast of #Australia But new research shows that the colorful critter is actually its own species, said Australia’s #NationalParks and #Wildlife Service ranger Michael Murphy. #AustralianGovernment has moved to protect this rosy rarity and other unique species by designating their #Mountain home in New South Wales as an " #Endangered ecological area." Because the #Pink slugs live in beds of red #EucalyptusLeaves Murphy suspects their color could potentially serve as #Camouflage helping the animals blend in to their leafy habitat. “However, [the slugs] also spend a lot of their time high on tree trunks nowhere near fallen leaves, so it is possible that the color is just a quirk of evolution. I think if you are isolated on a remote mountaintop, you can pretty much be whatever color you like,” Murphy noted. #IAm_MsJohnson 💞
