Re: Why the slugs are attracted by beer?

Hello Jul,

I'm American, and have also seen in my garden how slugs and snails are 
attracted to beer.  I agree that putting out small trays of beer can be an 
effective method of pest control in the garden.  However, although everyone 
seems to know that slugs will crawl into beer and die, nobody seems to know 
why.  I looked at a lot of websites devoted to either slug/snail biology or 
control, and could not find a definitive answer.

The best explanation I was able to find is that the beasts can't resist the 
scent of the yeast.  They may be irresistably attracted to the sweetish 
smell, crawl into the beer to investigate, and then drown.  Another possible 
explanation is that they are also drawn to carbonation in the beer - this 
may explain why the beer traps work only for a day or so, and why you need 
to keep changing them. 

I hope this information answers your question.  You have managed to ask a 
question for which the answer may not be known by anybody!

Good luck with the gardening!

Allison J. Gong
Mad Scientist