Banana Slugs are a fact of life on Canada's west coast. I spent half an hour watching this huge mollusc nibbling on a mushroom on the forest floor. Fascinating. Unfortunately I botched most of the photos. This seems funny, because I have no problem freezing the action of a galloping Pronghorn on the prairie - the world's second fastest mammal. But the slug moved surprisingly fast as it glided over the top of the mushroom and down the other side, and my shutter speed was too slow.

Despite my, er, miscalculations, I did come away with this image of the critter's fungus feast on the forest floor, as a reminder of the encounter. (Question: Is it really an encounter if the other party is oblivious to your presence?) Not exactly warm and fuzzy; more like cold and slimy. But as I said, fascinating.

Photographed in Marble River Provincial Park, Vancouver Island, BC (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2019 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

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Make:	NIKON CORPORATION
Model:	NIKON D810
Exposure:	0.5
Aperture:	f/22.0
ISO Speed:	250
Focal Length:	24 mm
Lens:	14.0-24.0 mm f/2.8