You’ve probably beheld a bright yellow banana slug on a hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains or perhaps even in your own backyard. But now, the beautiful banana slug is officially the California state slug.
In a series of bills signed into law on Sept. 27, the banana slug, Dungeness crab and black abalone join a plethora of other wildlife in representing California. This recognition brings attention to these creatures’ roles in the ecosystem and in the lives of the people in Santa Cruz and across the state. “It’s a really good way to focus on things that are unique and beautiful for California,” says Assemblymember Gail Pellerin for the 28th Assembly District, who proposed the banana slug bill.
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Before this bill passed, students from the Sacramento area testified before the committee hearing about the importance of the banana slug to the community. “It was a great way to engage youth in our civic process,” says Pellerin. The sole nay in the following vote came from Assemblymember Tom Lackey of the 36th Assembly District, due to his hatred of the similar looking fruit. Despite this bananas setback, Pellerin likes to say that the bill “oozed its way to Gov. Newsom’s desk and slimed its way into law.”
Bookshop Santa Cruz opens a section of their downtown Santa Cruz store devoted to UC Santa Cruz gift items. (Dan Coyro — Santa Cruz Sentinel)
The banana slug also has a special place as the mascot of UC Santa Cruz. The recognition of the banana slug at the state level was “an affirmation of one of the things that makes UC Santa Cruz a distinctive university,” says Chancellor Cynthia Larive. The banana slugs are surrounded by their namesake creatures that live among the bountiful redwoods on campus. In addition to studies of banana slugs by their colleagues on the main campus, researchers at the university’s Center for Coastal Climate Resilience study a variety of marine life, including the Dungeness crab and endangered black abalone.
All three of these creatures have important roles in their ecosystems and the lives of the people around them. Banana slugs have a symbiotic relationship with the state tree, the California redwood, as well as the important job of converting forest detritus into healthy soil. The Dungeness crab fishing season affects the livelihoods of those working at fisheries all along the Central Coast. And black abalones keep kelp populations in check, though their dwindling numbers landed them a spot on the endangered species list. So while you shouldn’t mess with a black abalone if you see one, next time you brush past a bright banana slug, be sure to boast about it.
A banana slug moves on fallen redwood leaves and sticks in the Cascade Creek property near Pescadero in 2019. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)