there are these black larvae or worms that are on a bunch of the hawthorne bushes in my backyard. does anyone have them too and/or know what they are?
From some looking, I think those are pear slugs, wiki page has a better photo, I’m not sure of the best way to control them unfortunately, saw one recommendation to just spray them off with a hose as an option, I’ve had luck with soap and water spray for other pests in the past.
thanks for the lead, i did some more reading and found this article in a scientific journal about its natural predators in Turkey. so hoverflies, lacewings, ladybugs (which i saw on the bushes too) and other beetles eat the larvae.
there are still too many tho so i might gather some into a terrarium and try and trick them into pupating and emerging in the winter. i think they become really pretty small black wasps, so i’ll take photos with a magnifying glass, let them live happily and die of old age, then leave any eggs to freeze outside or sum.