Red Fire Ants and Fire Ant Treatment

 

Both Native and Imported red fire ants can sting.

The Imported Fire ants are very aggressive, their sting can cause reactions anywhere from an irritation and nausea to even more severe reactions in humans.

Red fire ants have been known to repeatedly attack animals that may intrude on their nests. The red imported fire ant is particularly aggressive. They are known to attack people, plants, and animals, as well as cause damage to homes, buildings, and air-conditioning units,telephone wires. There are two kinds of red imported fire ants; the single queen and multiple queen forms.

Workers in single queen colonies are territorial, foraging within their territory. Workers from multiple queen colonies are not territorial, they freely move from one mound to another, which has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of mounds per acre.

Areas infested with single queen colonies contain 40 to 150 mounds per acre (rarely more than 7 million ants per acre). In areas with multiple queen colonies, there may be 200 or more mounds and 40 million red fire ants per acre.

The red imported fire ant builds mounds in almost any type of soil, but prefers open, sunny areas such as pastures, parks, lawns, meadows and cultivated fields.

Mounds can reach 18 inches in height, depending on the type of soil. Many times mounds are located in rotting logs and around stumps and trees.

The mound has no opening in the center like most ant mounds. Red imported fire ants leave and enter the mound housing the colony through underground tunnels

Colonies also can occur in or under buildings. When their mounds are disturbed, their workers will come out of the ground and sting the intruder very aggressively.

The red imported fire ant can have huge colonies with 300-500,000 workers foraging at distances of 100 yards. Their usual activity is from the spring time through the fall months.
During the spring and summer months, the active mounds will send out winged swarmer ants ;whose sole job is start new colonies.

Sometimes the red imported fire ant will nest inside during the winter months under the bathtubs (when on a slab), or next to hot water heater. The southern fire ant will usually nest in loose soil, but at times they can be found in woodwork or masonry. Their nest may be seen as large crevices in the ground that spread out from 2-4 feet. Their nest can be found under houses, under boards or stones, or in cracks in the concrete.

Colonies frequently migrate from one site to another. The queen needs only a few workers to start a new colony. ; They can develop a new mound several hundred feed away from their previous location almost overnight.

Flooding causes colonies to leave their mounds and float until they can reach land to establish a new mound. Colonies also can migrate to indoor locations

 

Click on image to enlarge USDA and United States Department of Agriculture

 

Identification : Imported fire ant

(Courtesy of the National Pest Control Association.)

Imported fire ants have the the following characteristics:

• Mounds of loose soil, resembling gopher diggings, are found above ground.
• Red fire ant mounds are generally numerous and easily sighted.
• Worker fire ants are dark, small, highly variable in size, aggressive, and sting relentlessly.
• Workers have the same body proportions from the tiniest to the largest. Head width never exceeds the abdomen width, even in the largest workers.

Fire Ant Reproduction

Total time from egg to adult averages 30 days,workers live up to 180 days, and queens live two to six years.

Red Fire Ant and Diet

The imported fire ant will not only forage for food, such as small insects dead animals, and sweet materials such as plant secretions but will kill insects and small animals to feed .

The southern fire ant go for a variety of foods including protein, greases and sweet foods.

Top Fire Ant Baits

Extinquish Plus Fire Ant Bait *We recommend an excellent fire ant bait called Extinquish Plus Fire Ant Bait Extinguish Plus comes in threes sizes: 1 lb, 4.5 lb, and 25 lb containers . Extinquish Plus Fire Ant Bait, has two active ingredients for it's killing power. One is an insect growth regulator, stopping any new ant generation and the other kills the ants. This is a very complete ant bait.	Advion Fire Ant Bait Advion Ant Bait is a fast acting bait, and kills the entire colony as well. It does not however have an insect growth regulator to stop any newer ants, you will need to repeat treatment with this bait.
Surrender Acephate /Acephate 75 SP One (1) pound container of Surrender Fire Ant Killer can treat up to 108 fire ant mounds Surrender Fire Ant Killer is an agricultural and fire ant insecticide. Surrender Fire Ant Killer (Acephate 75%)  works great killing fire ants.	Maxforce Fire Ant Bait Maxforce FC Ant Bait has as an active ingredient, Fipronil. Workers take it back to their queens to feed. Does not contain an IGR to stop newer generations, but will kill out the colony.
Apply ant baits on a fairly sunny day, when there is a good amount of activity around the mound, so that the ants can begin to forage for the bait. On extremely hot and rainy days do not put out the bait, in that there is not as much activity to begin to source the bait. You can use: Ant Bait Insect Plates to put the granulated ant bait inside to keep it dry and making it difficult for children and pets to get into.

Using insecticides for Fire Ant Control

When using a liquid insecticide as a drenching insecticide the goal would be again to kill the queen. The most effective way would be to use a rod to form vertical tunnels to facilitate the liquid mixture to reach the queens.

We recommended Conquer Insecticide or Bifen IT drenching insecticides for fire ants since the low vapor pressure forms a lot of fumes making the red fire ants die easily. Use at a low dilution rate, since you don't need a high dilution rate, but a fairly large quantity. You would use several gallons for large colonies or 1/2 gallon to two gallons on smaller colonies.

Conquer Insecticide Conquer can be used inside for flea control as well and works well on various insects.		Bifen ItBifen It has the same active ingredient and percentage as Talstar, but more economical. A great around product for outside pests, and works well on mosquitoes, ticks, fleas in the yard. Has a limited label to spray inside.
Drenching the mound ensures red fire ant killer. Feel free to call if you have further questions that we may answer.