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This month, four Finnish cities are offering six euros per litre for dead Spanish slugs.
20.6. 17:07Updated 20.6. 17:09
The population of the invasive Spanish slug (Arion vulgaris) has exploded in Finland, prompting four cities to offer six euros per litre for dead slugs.
Known as a highly destructive garden pest and even nicknamed the "killer slug" following reports of it preying on bird chicks, this species thrives in wet summers, with each individual capable of laying hundreds of eggs.
To combat infestations this summer, the cities of Lappeenranta, Turku, Kerava and Jämsä are encouraging locals to get the Crowdsorsa app, which allows residents to earn money by helping remove invasive species. The app has also helped control lupines and Himalayan balsam, an ornamental garden plant now considered a weed.
In Lappeenranta, the slug population has expanded to the point that the city has started distributing slug poison to residents free of charge.
According to city gardener Maisa Hautala, around 70 people showed up on the first distribution day.
"Last summer, the situation got out of hand. We received an overwhelming number of reports about Spanish slugs," she said.
Each city participating in the slug removal campaign has allocated 1,750 euros for those helping to eliminate the invasive pests. However, according to Crowdsorsa CEO Toni Paju, enthusiasm for the slug hunt has been lukewarm.
"I think killing slugs is more unpleasant and requires more effort than, say, cutting down a lupine," he said, adding that some feedback has also questioned the ethics of publicly sponsored slugcide.
Hunting down the slugs is not always easy, and the pest can be confused with the homegrown Limax cinereoniger, or ash-black slug.
How to do it
To get started, you need a bucket along with tweezers, scissors or tongs for picking up the slimy creatures. It's best to avoid handling slugs with bare hands, as they can carry harmful bacteria such as listeria and E. coli.
The most effective way to kill a slug is to cut it in half between its tentacles.
"You can also crush the slug's head with a rock, but there's a risk of slug slime splattering on you," Paju explained.
Slugs can also be killed by pouring boiling water over them in a bucket. This is also the Koponen family's preferred method.
"I personally prefer boiling water because cutting a slug sounds disgusting," Eeva Koponen said.
Getting a payout requires a few more steps. To earn a reward, slug killers must film a video showing the slugs being packed into one-litre containers (like milk cartons) sealed with tape and disposed of in designated bins.
The final step is uploading a video of the packing and disposal process to the Crowdsorsa app, and if everything is done correctly, the payment gets credited to the user's account.
More than a decade ago, Finland adopted an invasive species strategy, which aims to mitigate the damage and risk caused by non-indigenous flora and fauna.
