Threat from down under as Australian worm hurts soil

Caroline Lewis with a picture of one of the three Australia flatworms she found in her vegetable garden at Kilcatherine, Beara, Co Cork. Picture Dan Linehan

Gardeners have been advised to be alert for an invasive Australian flatworm which environmentalists say poses a serious risk to Ireland's biodiversity and economy.

Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE) said it has a confirmed identification of the creature in a garden on the Beara peninsula in West Cork.