Caterpillars strip fields bare across Sarganserland

Thousands of caterpillars have eaten grasslands bare in the Sarganserland region, leaving farmers with reduced yields and no prospect of compensation, SRF reported.

The caterpillars, which appeared in September, are the larvae of the one-point grass moth, a yellow-brown moth that can lay up to 1,000 eggs at a time. The eggs hatch after six weeks. The damage has been reported across the region, from Wartau to Lake Walen.

Farmer Thomas Willi had hoped to cut grass again after a dry summer, but the harvest was far smaller than expected. The caterpillars ate nearly everything, leaving the dandelions, which they do not like. Residents have also found them on walls, in corners and around homes.

The St Gallen agriculture office advises farmers to delay sowing grain until the caterpillars are gone and to keep cows off the pastures to avoid further damage to the ground. Office head Bruno Inauen said there was no way to control the caterpillars and no legal basis for the canton to compensate farmers for their losses.

Inauen said large populations of the moth occur about once every 10 years. It is native to Switzerland and has usually been found in greater numbers in Ticino. He said the climate may have helped it cross the Alps into Sarganserland, where the temperatures appear to suit it. Officials hope the grasslands will recover and produce a full crop next year.