Los Flemings

a leach! We got positive identification via a submit your question page at the NC Museum of Science. Yesterday, we took pictures to share with Sam's class and there was a lot of curiosity. It'll be fun to see how they react to the news. Here' s the full response from the naturalist:

Hi Ben. I received your info request. The animal you found is indeed a
leach. There are a few different species in our waters- many feed on
reptiles, amphibians and fish, but some will take a blood meal from
warm-blooded animals. I think the specimen you found is one of those
species. Not too worry.
As you may know, leaches inject both a sedative and an anti-coagulant
into their wound, and they are rather antiseptic as they imbibe. For
this reason they have been used in medicine to clean wounds and to drain
swelling. Go figure. Hope this helps. John Connors in the Naturalist
Center @ NC Museum of Natural Sciences.