These are tubellarian flatworms of the terrestrial type. Most land planarians are tropical in distribution due to their requirement for hot and humid environments. All are nocturnal in habit and are voracious predators of soft-bodied invertebrates, which are detected via chemical cues and subdued with copious amounts of mucous and an eversible pharynx.
The Bipalium featured in this gallery was found beneath the damp bark of a rotting tree stump in Ontario in 2010. Tentatively identified, this is possibly one of the invasive species yet unrecorded in Canada. Excellent images of the same specimen may be viewed on fellow colleague and photographer Morgan D. Jackson's blog. Another small species (Microplana terrestris) is featured on this page.