For this workshop we will learn about a very under-appreciated and under-recorded group, Slugs!
This workshop will be led by Chris du Feu and will take place at the Museum of Scottish Railways in Bo’ness.
This workshop has an extra exciting component, as participants will be asked to collect slug specimens from their gardens/locality prior to attending the workshop. These slugs will be central to the workshop and will allow us to learn how to identify slugs with the help of live specimens!
Date: Wednesday 29 October 2025
Time: 10am – 4pm
Location: Museum of Scottish Railways, Bo’ness
Workshop Description: Join us for a one-of-a-kind event. In this workshop we will explore the enigmatic world of slugs. While these molluscs are often viewed as a slimy garden pest, they are essential to healthy ecosystems. Slugs break down soft tissue, which allows for the recycling of nutrients from this into the soil. A slug-rich soil is therefore a healthy soil. They are furthermore good indicators of a biodiverse ecosystem.
During this workshop Chris du Feu will first introduce the ecology of slugs and their role in the ecosystem, and then we will go through the fundamentals of slug identification. The participants will have an extremely important role in this workshop. Prior to the workshop all attendees will receive detailed instructions on how to trap slugs and record their presence, they will be asked to bring these slugs to the workshop, where we will focus on identifying the slugs each participant has brought to the course and properly recording them. Bringing specimens that participants found near their homes will almost certainly create new slug records!
If time permits, we will also go on a foray around the museum to look for more slug specimens on the day, recording as we do so.
Workshop Leader: Chris du Feu is a retired mathematics teacher who has spent a long time looking at this under-recorded and much-maligned group of species. Chris is also a bird ringer, author of the BTO Nestboxes guide, managed the EURING Data Bank for 12 years and is now a slug verifier for iRecord.
Suitable for: Beginners (ages 16 and over)
What to bring: It is important that all participants bring at least one slug specimen that they caught in the week prior to the workshop. It is very easy to capture live slugs, and detailed instructions will be sent out before the event. Please also record where and when you found each slug specimen.
Please also bring suitable outdoor footwear and warm clothing, lunch and water, waterproofs, notepad and pen. If you have one, please bring a hand lens and any relevant ID books (spares will be available).
Cost: Slugs! Please bring (live) slugs to the workshop as payment.
Free (donations to TWIC welcome). Please note that parking near the site may be limited and subject to fees.
Travel: This event will take place at the Museum of Scottish Railways in Bo’ness. This location can be accessed by train then bus from Edinburgh, however it is easiest to arrive by car. Parking is available at the site, however this might be subject to parking fees.
Booking essential. Places limited to 12.