''Deroceras agreste'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of air-breathing land

slug Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less Terrestrial mollusc, 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 ...

in the family

Agriolimacidae ''Agriolimacidae'' is a family of small and medium-sized land slugs, or shell-less snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks. Distribution Distribution of Limacidae is Holarctic, this include: Nearctic, western Palearctic and eastern P ...

. Its common names include field slug, grey field slug, milky slug,''Deroceras agreste''.
Terrestrial Mollusc Tool. and northern field slug.''Deroceras'' (''Deroceras'') ''agreste'' (Linnaeus 1758), Northern field slug.
MolluscIreland. National Museums Northern Ireland. 2010.

Description

This slug is up to 5 centimeters long. It is pale brown, tan, "buff or oatmeal-coloured", with a darker head and tentacles. There are no obvious body markings. The sole of the foot is white. 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 fluid, serous and muc ...

is clear, but when disturbed, the sole produces a white mucus. This species lives in moist grassy and

marsh In ecology, a marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous plants rather than by woody plants.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p More in genera ...

y habitat types. It feeds on dead and living plant material, and is sometimes an agricultural pest on crops such as

lettuce Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae mostly grown as a leaf vegetable. The leaves are most often used raw in Green salad, green salads, although lettuce is also seen in other kinds of food, such as sandwiche ...

. Its lifespan is about one year.

Distribution

This species is native to Asia and northern and central Europe.

References

Agriolimacidae Gastropods described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Fauna of Asia {{Agriolimacidae-stub