Today was very foggy and damp. I stopped by the grocery store on the way back from school drop-off to save myself another trip later. While bringing the groceries in, I stumbled across this odd little guy sliming his way across my sidewalk. Of course, I had to come in and grab my camera.

At first I thought it might be a snake of some kind. After watching it feel its way along with the arrow-shaped head, I decided it was more likely a worm. It left a significant trail of slime behind, but the body was not segmented like an earthworm.

So, after snapping a few pictures, I finished unloading my groceries and jumped on the Internet. It only took a few search variations to determine this unique creature is called a “land planaria”. It is also referred to as a “shovel-headed garden worm” or “arrowhead flatworm”. The best info I found was at the University of Florida website - http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/IN206.

I was a bit disturbed to find they eat earthworms, but relieved to know they are not harmful to humans. One site did say these worms taste terrible to dogs (I?m not going to test that one!).

The worm dug down in the bushes at the front door. I’m not sure if he’s making that his permanent home, but I was able to use his visit this morning to learn something new today.

Tags: Nature