14-07-2025
Officials offer cash prizes to residents to fight back against slug invasion: 'Last summer, the situation got out of hand'
An unwelcome visitor has pushed authorities in southern Finland to offer cash prizes for its removal.
The so-called Spanish slug is an aggressive and invasive gastropod that does immense damage to crops throughout Europe. Despite its name, it's not clear where the species actually originated; as the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum reported, German researchers could not find any of them in Spain.
Regardless of their native habitat, they have been a pain for dozens of European nations for decades. They are particularly abundant in southern Finland, which is why officials are offering a financial incentive to residents to help eradicate them.
"Last summer, the situation got out of hand," Maisa Hautala, city gardener in Lappeenranta, told the Helsinki Times. "We received an overwhelming number of reports about Spanish slugs."
To combat this scourge, residents are being offered the modest sum of €6 ($7.03) for every liter of slugs they dispatch. The payout is tied to an app; users upload footage of slugs being sealed in containers and dropped in designated waste bins.
Invasive species pose significant threats to biodiversity, as they outcompete indigenous plants and wildlife for resources. In this case, the hungry gastropods feast on their smaller native brethren and damage crops. Because some carry Escherichia coli, their mucus trails can contaminate the produce they contact. As Novia University of Applied Science notes, the slugs can self-fertilize and lay 2-400 eggs at a time, so even a single slug can quickly cause an infestation.
Cash incentives have been used to combat invasive species in other areas, while some communities take collective local action. There are different strategies, but the most effective remedy is prevention and strengthening an area's biodiversity with native flora. Such efforts begin at home. Rewilding a yard isn't just good for the ecosystem; it's much easier and cheaper to maintain.
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