How do slugs move?

How do slugs move? Do they glide? Wiggle? Undulate? Slither?
How do slugs move? Do they glide? Wiggle? Undulate? Slither?

In 2010, Lai et al. published an article (bit.ly/sluggymoves) on the locomotion of terrestrial gastropods – snails and slugs (as opposed to marine gastropods like sea slugs). Slugs crawl steadily on their belly or ventral foot. How this takes place is a subject of some controversy. It seems to be driven by a train of periodic muscle contractions (pedal waves) and relaxations (interwaves) from their tails to their heads. These waves interact with a thin layer of mucus that somehow produces a net forward propulsive force. The controversial question is how exactly the mucus layer interacts with the propulsive forces in terms of fluid dynamics. In response to your question, I think undulate would be the most correct.