Frequently Asked Questions
General Information
We have had red fire ants in Hawaiʻi for as long as I can remember. Why are they considered a newer introduction?
Yes, we have had red fire ants in Hawaiʻi since the 1940’s, but these are actually a different species from the more recently introduced Little Fire Ant (Wasmannia auropunctata). The red fire ants are called Tropical Fire Ants (Solenopsis geminata). It can be confusing because both species have a similar common name – fire ants – but in actuality they are very different.
Tropical Fire Ants are originally from the southern part of mainland United States. You will often find their nests in lawns and other open spaces. If you look at them closely, the workers vary in size and some have really large heads. Overall, they are much larger than Little Fire Ants. Tropical Fire Ants are about half as long as a penny is wide, while Little Fire Ants are only about as long as a penny is thick.
If you accidentally step on a Tropical Fire Ant nest, they will most likely sting you on your feet or lower legs. The sting results in a well-defined welt, like a bee sting. With Little Fire Ants, you are much more likely to be stung on the torso or the arms because they nest in trees as well as on the ground. When you bump or disturb these trees, the ants will fall down and get caught in your clothing. When you feel the sting, often the ants are already gone. It feels like a burning rash that can be as big as your hand, but often smaller.
I don’t understand what the big deal is with LFA. We already have lots of different ants around our house and in the garden.
Hawai’i has over 60 ant species and almost all of these are not a problem to the average person. Sure, they might come into the house and have some nuisance value there but they are no big problem.
LFA are different. First, once they have established themselves around your house, there will be millions of them and when they do get into a house, they will overrun it if we let them. Second, they sting people. We get many calls from people at their wit’s end. They, their children, and pets are getting stung every day. We’ve even had calls from people being stung while using the restroom! Third, they will sting your pets or other domestic animals. Life for a dog or a cat in a LFA infested area can be miserable. Repeated stings in your pet’s eyes could lead to blindness.
A lot of people are not worried about LFA when it’s not in their home, but they seem to quickly change their minds once it’s there. Once you have LFA, they are not easy to get rid of, so an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
If LFA are such a problem, can’t our government eradicate them?
Well, this is a really complicated question, and the answer is yes… and no. Before attempting to eradicate an invasive species, the following criteria must be considered:
- Invasive impact – The first thing to think about when a new pest is discovered is “will this pest actually be a problem, and if so, how big will this problem be?” We have many exotic plants and animals here in Hawaiʻi that arguably do no harm and have very few impacts. It would not make sense to eradicate something unless we knew it was going to cause a lot of damage. When Little Fire Ants (LFA) were first discovered in 1999, there was a lot less information available about the likely impacts of LFA. At present, we now know the impacts are far more extensive than first estimated.
- Technical feasibility – The next thing that we need to think about is whether there are methods available that have a high likelihood of successfully controlling this pest. This is where things start to get a bit hazy. LFA are different from other pest ants. Besides living on the ground like other pest ants, they also have nests in trees. Is this such a big deal? Well… YES! Almost all the products available for ant control are granular. They are made to be sprinkled on the ground. LFA nesting in trees do not necessarily forage on the ground, so are unaffected by bait granules placed there. When eradication was first attempted, the ants living on the ground were controlled but as soon as treatment stopped, the tree-dwelling nests spread back onto the ground. So, at the time LFA were first found, there was no technically feasible way of controlling them. This has changed because the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab developed a gel bait that allows the target application of bait into trees.
- Cost and Benefits – Governments and politicians are reluctant to spend money where they can see no benefit in doing so. When LFA were first detected on the Big Island, the fact that no feasible control method was available meant it was not a good idea to proceed anyway. Although we now have control methods to target LFA in trees, LFA are so widespread and abundant, eradication is almost impossible. However, for Oʻahu, Maui, and Kauaʻi, the infestations are small, we now have better tools for ant control, and the impacts of not eradicating will be great. Early detection, rapid response, and prevention are among our most cost efficient and effective ways of reducing the costs of LFA.
Where did the LFA in Hawai’i come from?
Little Fire Ants (LFA) are native to South America, but have been spreading slowly throughout the tropics and subtropics around the world for the last 100 years or so. They are now found in places such as Israel, Spain, Gabon, Cameroon, the Galapagos, Australia, French Polynesia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Guam, New Caledonia, Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, and of course Hawaiʻi.
We are not exactly sure where the LFA in Hawaiʻi are from, but genetic comparisons have shown that LFA in Hawaiʻi are most closely related to populations of LFA in Florida. First detected in 1999 in a plant nursery located in the Puna District of Hawaiʻi Island, it is thought the LFA may have come in on a shipment of palm plants from Florida.
An interesting journal article about how the different introduced populations of LFA around the world are related to each other and the native populations can be found here.
Where in Hawai’i are LFA found?
Little Fire Ants (LFA) have been found on all the major Hawaiian Islands except for Molokaʻi. Hawaiʻi Island is currently the most heavily infested island. Isolated populations of LFA have been detected on Oʻahu, Maui, Kauaʻi, and Lānaʻi, but there are efforts on each of these islands to eradicate or aggressively contain those infestations. To find the most up to date information on the current status of infestations on each island, visit stoptheant.org.
How are LFA spreading within Hawaiʻi?
On their own, Little Fire Ants (LFA) spread very slowly through a process called “budding” where a queen in a nest wanders off with a few workers to start a new colony a short distance away. So how have LFA spread all over Hawaiʻi Island and reached neighbor islands? Well, LFA belong to a small group of ant species that scientists like to call “tramp” or “hitch-hiker” ants, meaning they travel from place to place by hitching a ride. Common items LFA will hitch a ride on are potted plants, plant cuttings, produce, pallets, building materials, etc. So, basically, it is us humans that move them around, often without knowing it.
A common way LFA “hitch” a ride to neighbor islands is through potted plants. The soil of a potted plant provides an ideal moist and shady environment for LFA to set up a nest. As a result, the Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture (HDOA) quarantine inspectors inspect all potted plants leaving the Big Island bound for neighbor islands.
Do winged LFA queens fly off long distances to start a new colony?
Most ant species produce new queens and males from time to time, usually when things are going well for the colony. When weather conditions are just right, the queens and the males take to the skies in a “nuptial flight.” The queens mate and fly off to start a new colony. Red Imported Fire Ants queens are capable of flying up to three miles and can be carried much farther on the wind.
Little Fire Ants (LFA) do NOT follow these rules. Scientists think they actually mate in the nest and then stay in the nest along with other queens in an extended family. For people trying to control them, this is both good and bad news. It means that even if a treatment kills some of the queens, often there will be enough queens left over to keep the colony going. On the other hand, it also means that LFA cannot spread far all by themselves. They actually need us to move them to a new location. So just because there are some LFA colonies in an area, does not mean the entire area is doomed. If we can prevent them from moving to new places, the spread will not be that quick. So how do we do this? Well, by checking new items that you are bringing to your home that LFA like to hitch-hike on including potted plants, anything with soil attached, produce, plant cuttings, mulch and landscaping material.
To start a new colony, LFA instead spread through a process called “budding.” A queen will leave a nest with some workers and walk a short distance away to the next suitable nest site. This results in a high density of colonies that are all working together in a continuous invasion front.
How can I tell if I have LFA?
The best way for you to tell if you have Little Fire Ants (LFA) is to do a survey of your home and lot. Read our guide on how to Survey your home for LFA to learn more.
Mail or bring your ant samples to one of our offices:
Hilo (Main Office)
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
Department of Agriculture
16 E. Lanikaula St.
Hilo, HI 96720
Kailua-Kona Office
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
CTAHR Extension Center
79-7381 Old Mamalahoa Highway
Kealakekua, HI 96750
Oʻahu Office
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
Department of Agriculture
1428 South King St.
Honolulu, HI 96814
I have a microscope – how can I identify LFA?
With a naked eye, there are quite a few small, red ant species that may be confused for Little Fire Ants (LFA). But with a microscope, you have the ability to observe a combination of features that are unique to LFA. Check out our guide to How to Identify LFA and the Illustrated Key to Ants in Hawaiʻi.
Because positively identifying LFA can be tricky even with a microscope, it is best to either mail or bring your ant samples to one of one of our offices to confirm your identification.
Hilo (Main Office)
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
Department of Agriculture
16 E. Lanikaula St.
Hilo, HI 96720
Kailua-Kona Office
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
CTAHR Extension Center
79-7381 Old Mamalahoa Highway
Kealakekua, HI 96750
O’ahu Office
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
Department of Agriculture
1428 South King St.
Honolulu, HI 96814
I heard that pets can go blind if they are stung by LFA on their eyes. Is this true?
In areas of the world where LFA have spread, researchers have recorded an increased number of domestic and wild animals with tropical keratopathy – a clouding of the cornea leading to partial blindness. LFA are attracted to the moisture of an animal’s eye and when the animal blinks and disturbs the LFA, it stings in defense. It has been suggested that when a LFA’s stinger punctures the lens, mycobacteria enters resulting in clouding of the cornea.
It is best to treat your property for LFA if you have pets. LFA are especially attracted to the protein in your cat or dog’s kibble. If you observe ants at your pet’s bowl, you can place the bowl in a tray of soapy water to act as a moat that LFA cannot cross.
Is the county mulch LFA free?
An unfortunate side-effect of mulching green material and re-distributing it is the possibility that plant pests and pathogens might be present in the mulch, thereby spreading these problems to other locations. In Hawaiʻi, Little Fire Ants (LFA) are a special concern. No one wants to accidentally bring these critters to their home! Many households in Hilo and surrounding districts have LFA, so when these households take their garden waste to the one of the County of Hawaiʻi green waste facilities, it is inevitable that some LFA will be attached to the clippings and cuttings.
The County of Hawaiʻi, in collaboration with Hawaiʻi Ant Lab and Hawaiian Earth Recycling, have established the following protocols for the Hilo and Waikoloa mulch processing facilities to reduce the likelihood of inadvertently spreading LFA through the movement of County mulch:
- Mulch is to remain on site for approximately a month at the Hilo and Waikaloa mulch processing facility. The mulch will be turned and allowed to heat up to over 130 degrees. This extreme temperature is likely to destroy any LFA living within the mulch material.
- At the Hilo facility, the surrounding area around the mulch piles are to be treated for LFA monthly.
- Mulch piles are to be regularly inspected for LFA at both the Hilo and Waikaloa processing facilities.
The combination of these risk management actions will virtually eliminate invasive ants, other insects and plant diseases from the mulch. Remember, there is always a small possibility that ants occasionally survive this process. If you are concerned about even this small risk, check out our protocol for managing mulch.
I have problems with another ant, can the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab help?
We sure can! But in order for us to help, we need to know the ant species you are trying to control. Different ant species prefer different food types so its important to match up the bait with the ant species. Collect some of the ants and place them in a zip lock bag. Freeze the bags for 24 hours to kill the ants. Mail or bring ant samples to one of our offices for identification and please don’t forget to include your contact information.
Hilo (Main Office)
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
Department of Agriculture
16 E. Lanikaula St.
Hilo, HI 96720
Kailua-Kona Office
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
CTAHR Extension Center
79-7381 Old Mamalahoa Highway
Kealakekua, HI 96750
Oʻahu Office
Hawaiʻi Ant Lab
Department of Agriculture
1428 South King St.
Honolulu, HI 96814
Control of Little Fire Ants
I surveyed my property and have found no LFA. How do I keep it LFA free?
There are some really easy things you can do to keep Little Fire Ants (LFA) away from your home. Remember, LFA are “hitch-hiker” ants. The way they move from place to place is by hitching a ride with other items. So the first, and most important thing, is to check anything you bring to your home to make sure you are not accidentally bringing LFA as well. The things that are most likely to have LFA traveling with them are potted plants, cuttings, foliage, produce, soil, mulch, landscaping materials, or any item that has been sitting in an infested area. Check these items using our guide to How to Survey for LFA.
The second way LFA can enter your property is by natural spread from neighboring properties. This is a much slower process but can also be prevented. The easiest way to manage natural spread is for the whole neighborhood to work together on preventing LFA. Remember, if your neighbor has LFA, eventually you will too. So, get together with your neighbors and develop a neighborhood plan. If everybody is careful about what they bring on to their property, the whole neighborhood will benefit.
Sometimes it’s too late and there are LFA nearby already, or maybe your neighbors do not live on-site. The best approach then is to survey your property boundaries using the chopstick method quarterly. If you detect LFA on your border, you can treat them with a bait to keep them at bay. Check out A Householder’s Guide to Managing LFA Around the Home for more info.
Why can’t I just get rid of the LFA with a can of Raid?
Often, our first reaction after seeing Little Fire Ants (LFA) on our property is to grab a can of insect spray like Raid and let them have it. But using contact sprays is rarely successful for controlling LFA, except for instances where you wish to remove individual ants from a particular location for a short period of time. The trail of LFA we observe out and about looking for food are the older workers. The other 90% of the colony is out of view tucked away in the nest. Therefore, solely relying on contact sprays to control for LFA means you are having little impact on the infestation overall.
The best way to manage LFA around your home is to use ant baits. Baits are made from an attractive food laced with a toxin (usually a very small amount). Foraging workers will find the bait and do all the hard work for you, bringing back the food to share with the rest of the colony, including the queens. After a couple of days, the toxin takes effect killing the workers and queens. It is important to note that not all the workers and queens will die after your first treatment and that is why it is critical for you to reapply the bait every 4-6 weeks for a year to achieve long lasting results.
I don’t like to use chemicals. What about natural and organic solutions?
First of all, a word of caution on “organic” and “home remedies.” Just because something is considered “organic” or not artificially made, does not mean it is safe to use, or does not harm the environment. Be careful with anything you use to kill bugs, no matter if it is organic or not. Please treat them all as the dangerous chemicals they are.
For example, boric acid, a natural occurring compound, is often regarded as a natural pest control product which can be used in some circumstances in organic agriculture (check with your certifying agency first). However, just because boric acid is a natural substance, does not mean it is completely safe. It is harmful to children, adults, and especially dogs, so contact should be avoided. Also, too much boric acid in the soil can be toxic to plants.
There is currently no organic bait option that is effective on LFA. The Hawaiʻi Ant Lab is working to develop a formulation, and if found to be effective, will work to get it approved for use.
A friend suggested I mix peanut butter with either Amdro or Talstar and spread it on a branch to treat LFA in trees. Does this really work?
Little Fire Ants (LFA) nest both up in trees and on the ground. If you have trees over 6ft, then you will need to apply ant bait in the trees, because LFA in trees won’t necessarily come down to feed on granular baits applied to the ground. As a result, we have developed a Hawaiʻi Ant Lab (HAL) gel bait recipe that will stick to the branches and trunk of a tree.
Mixing up the HAL gel bait is like following a brownie recipe, it takes some time to prepare. As a result, people prefer the convenience of applying a ready-to-use granular bait. We have heard from a number of residents who will take peanut butter and mix it with a granular bait (i.e. Amdro) or a granular barrier treatment (i.e. Talstar) and then apply it on a tree. There are a number of reasons why we highly suggest you do NOT do this.
First off, there are legal ramifications with mixing pesticides with other ingredients. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) specifically states that pesticides cannot be reformulated with a product not listed on a pesticide’s label. Amdro and Talstar’s label does not state you can mix them with peanut butter. If you are going to be applying pesticides, you are required by law to follow all the instructions on a pesticide’s label to protect your health and the environment.
Now that we have covered the legality, let’s talk about whether it’s even effective method in controlling LFA:
- Amdro & Peanut Butter – First, Amdro is a made up of an attractive food (corn grit) laced with a very small amount of toxin (hydramethylnon). The toxin makes up less than 1% of the product, which is just enough to kill a little fire ant after 2-3 days. When you mix Amdro with peanut butter, you are dramatically diluting the amount of toxin rendering it ineffective in killing LFA. Second, LFA are going to prefer the peanut butter over the Amdro. Contrary to popular belief, ants do not eat solids, rather they only consume liquids. When a LFA feeds on a granule of Amdro, it sucks the oil off and leaves the rest behind. So if you put peanut butter side by side with Amdro, LFA are going to consume the creamy texture of peanut butter far easier than a granular like Amdro.
- Talstar & Peanut Butter – Granular Talsar is a type of barrier treatment. You sprinkle it around areas where LFA are to be excluded. As LFA crawl over the treated areas, they come into contact with the toxin and die soon after. Talstar is not meant to be a bait. The way a bait like Amdro works is a worker finds the granule, feeds on it, and goes back to the nest to share it with the other ants, including the larvae (ant young) and the queen. The toxin in Amdro delays its toxicity and only kills the ant after 2-3 days. If you mix Talstar with peanut butter, it will kill the LFA far too quickly and the ant will not have a chance to share it with the other workers and most importantly the queen. In addition, too high of a concentration of a toxin in a pesticide makes it unattractive to LFA. If a LFA detects that the Talstar/peanut butter mixture is making them sick so quickly, they will not recruit other LFA workers to come and feed on the mixture.
In conclusion, don’t waste your time and money mixing peanut butter with Amdro or Talstar! Stick to our tried-and-true HAL gel bait recipe when treating for LFA in trees.
I have young children and pets. Is it safe to use ant baits around them?
One of the benefits of ants baits is that they contain very little active ingredient. The active ingredient is the chemical in pesticides that kills the pest. For example, the active ingredient Hydramethylnon in the granular bait product Amdro Kills Fire Ants is less than 1% of the product weight. After all, baits are formulated with only just enough toxin to kill a tiny little ant after 2-3 days. As long as you follow the directions on the label, Hydramethynon as a pesticide is considered low in toxicity. To make a dog sick from Amdro you would need to force feed them an enormous quantity.
If you are concerned about the use of pesticides on your property, we recommend the use of the gel bait recipe mixed with the product Tango. The active ingredient in Tango is (s)-methoprene, which is a type of insect growth regulator (IGR) rather than a toxin. IGR’s work by preventing the larvae (ant young) from developing into adults and slows down egg production by the queens. One major advantage of (s)-methoprene is that it is one of the safest insecticides available today. For this reason, it is often used for insect control in food crops and even drinking water.
Even though the ant baits we recommend are considered low in toxicity, you should always read and follow the directions on the label. These products may include the following statements:
- “Avoid direct exposure of animals to granules.” – If you have pets, remove your pets them from the sites you are treating. They may return once you are done with application. Because chickens may be attracted to the corn grits in granular baits, we recommend spreading the granules late in the afternoon when your chickens roost.
- “Do not graze or feed treated lawn or sod clippings to livestock.” – Only Tango, Antixx, and Firefighter are labeled for use on grazed pastures.
- “This pesticide is toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates. DO NOT apply directly to water, to areas where surface water is present, or to intertidal areas below the mean high water mark.”
- “This product is not for use on vegetables or other food crops.” – Most of the ant baits are not labeled for use on edible plants, with the exception of Tango, Antixx Fire Ant Bait, Firefighter, and Siesta. Tango may be used on any edible plant. Antixx and Firefighter may be used only on the plants listed on the label (check label for details). And Siesta is only labeled for use on pome, stone, nut and citrus trees.
Help! There are LFA inside my home! What should I do?
The bad news is that an invasion of LFA in your home means you have a pretty bad infestation in your yard. The good news is that they are not actually nesting in your home. LFA are only entering your home to scavenge for food. They prefer to nest in moist habitats, so unless you have a leaky pipe in your house, they are nesting outside.
For a temporary fix, you can simply wipe up the ants in your home with a soapy rag. Though unfortunately those ants are soon going to be replaced by new workers. If you want a more permanent fix, you need to get rid of the queens tucked away in the nest. As long as the queens are unharmed, they will be producing more ants to enter your home. To get to the queens you need to bait outside your home. When a worker ant finds a bait and feeds on it, it returns to the nest to share the bait with the other workers, larvae, and most importantly the queen. Do not bait inside your home, because you don’t want to recruit any more ants into your living space.
You can also choose to apply a continuous barrier around the perimeter of your home. Barriers (i.e. Talstar, Spectricide, Ortho Home Defense) contain a toxin that has a residual effect and can stay active for a few months. Once it is applied around your home, any ants or other insects that wander across the treated surface will come into contact with the chemical and die. It’s also important to trim back any vegetation touching your home since LFA can use a tree branch as a bridge over your barrier to enter your home.
I have been treating for LFA, but it doesn’t seem to be working. What I am doing wrong?
If your treatments are not working, it is usually due to human error. Here are some reasons why you may not be seeing a reduction in Little Fire Ants (LFA):
- Too long between treatments – We recommend spacing out your treatments to every 4-6 weeks. But let’s say you start out with your first treatment in the beginning of June. Then in July when your next treatment is due, you get busy and skip the treatment. In this scenario, all your time and money that you invested in your first treatment would sadly have been in vain. This is because each LFA colony has many queens and each queen can produce about 7 eggs a day. Even if some are killed by your first treatment, the remaining queens simply increase their rate of egg production until the population goes back to normal. LFA can completely recover from a single bait treatment in 8-10 weeks. So, mark your treatments on your calendar and do your best to not skip one!
- Only treating areas of your property where you have been stung or seen LFA – If your property is less than a half-acre in size, it is critical that you treat your entire property. LFA have lots of small nests and often we do not know where they all are. It’s easy to not notice these tiny little critters when they are only as long as a penny is thick! If you only treat areas where you have been stung while doing yard work, the LFA you have missed will continue to spread. So, walk over your entire property and systematically apply the bait to every section. This is quite easy to do with a small seed spreader if you are using granular bait. If you have tall trees or vegetation over head-high, you will also need to use the HAL Gel Bait.
If you have multiple acres of property, we recommend surveying your property to identify the extent of the infestation you need to treat. For example, if you have three acres, you may discover only an acre is infested with LFA and needs treatment. If a survey determines all three acres are infested and treating the entire property bears too much of a burden and cost, you can still choose to only treat the areas you use most frequently like the yard around your house.
- Not treating your trees – To effectively reduce the number of LFA around your home, you need to apply bait where LFA like to nest – on the ground and in trees. LFA in trees won’t necessarily come down to feed on granular baits placed on the ground. If only the colonies on the ground are treated, neighboring ants living in trees will spread back to the ground. We recommend that if you have trees over 6ft tall, you need to mix up and apply HAL Gel Bait to their trunks and branches.
- Using old granular bait – Once you open a bottle of granular bait like Amdro and expose the corn grits to oxygen, the oil quickly starts to turn rancid. Rancid bait is not attractive to LFA. So when purchasing granular bait, buy only the size that is enough to treat your property in 2-3 treatments.
- Applying a bait and a barrier treatment at the same time – If an ant carrying bait back to the nest is killed by the chemical barrier you applied, she will not make it back to the nest to share the bait with her sisters and the colony might survive. Always apply a barrier treatment a few days to a week after you have applied a bait.
- Expecting to see a decline in LFA soon after starting to use Tango – When you treat with Tango, it will not kill the LFA. Instead, Tango prevents the development of future populations by blocking the ability of larvae to turn into an adult and reducing egg production in queens. You will start to see a reduction in the LFA population in 3-4 months, because workers have about a 3 month lifespan and you are waiting for them to die off. Even though Tango is not a toxicant, it is still a very effective ant bait. You just need to be patient and remember to repeat treatments every 4-6 weeks for at least a year. If you do not treat regularly, the queens can eventually grow out of the growth regulator effects and boost egg production again.
Always feel free to call or come visit our office to get advice about any issues you are having!
I am eager to get my LFA infestation under control. Can I treat more often than the recommended every 4-6 week interval?
We don’t recommend treating more often than every 4-6 weeks for several reasons:
- Little Fire Ants (LFA) really like to feed on baits because they don’t get a lot of fats in their diet. So when available, they gorge. But once that nutrient void is “full,” they won’t keep feeding on it.
- With toxic ant baits like Amdro, once LFA realize what is making them sick, they will stop feeding on it. The LFA that survive the first round of baiting will remember that those little yellow granules made them sick last time, and will actually avoid taking your bait the next time around if given again too soon.
- You can get just as good results with less effort and cost by spacing out your treatments every 4-6 weeks for both toxic (i.e. Amdro) and IGR (i.e. Tango) baits.
I have seen advertisements for LFA bait stations. Are they effective?
Generally, we do not recommend the use of bait stations for the following reasons:
- Bait stations concentrate the bait in a handful of isolated locations and limit the opportunities for LFA to find it. When baiting, we recommend walking back and forth over your entire property and systematically sprinkling the bait to every section. Broadcasting gives ample opportunity for foraging workers to find and feed on a bait granule.
- Granular baits become unattractive to LFA and spoils 1-2 days after being exposed to humidity, sunlight, and heat. Bait stations do nothing to block the humidity that spoils the bait.
- You can only place bait in bait stations, if the label states you can. If the label does say not for use in bait stations , then you are not legally allowed to do so. You are required by law to follow all the directions and precautions listed on a label, so always read the label first! Maxforce Complete is the recommended baits product labeled for use in bait stations. Please note, Maxforce Complete is NOT labeled for use in fruit trees.
There are exceptions to when bait stations are useful. For example:
- If you have LFA in your car, instead of sprinkling granular bait throughout the interior of your car, we recommend placing the granular bait into bait stations.
- If you have LFA in your home, we generally recommend treating for them outside the house because LFA prefer to nest outside where it is moist. LFA are only wandering into your home to look for food, so placing bait inside your home will only attract more LFA. In the rare occasion LFA are nesting in your home (for example, near a leaky pipe), then bait stations may be used if the label allows.
To construct a bait station, place some granular bait in a pouch of tin foil, then poke holes in the tin foil to allow the LFA to access the bait. Again, be sure the product you are using is labeled for use in bait stations and follow all directions on the label.
Can we introduce a biocontrol for LFA?
For many insect pests, the introduction of natural predators or pathogens is the most effective solution. There are thousands of very successful biocontrol programs that save agriculture millions, even billions of dollars per year. However, most insect pests are solitary – they live out their lives with little or no contact with other insects (except for mating). This means a natural predator, for example, can reduce the pest problem one insect at a time.
Ants, in contrast, are one of the few insect families that live together in a social colony. Large portions of the colony, including the queen, stay out of sight and are difficult to find. Most foraging ants (the ones we actually see) are the older workers assigned to the high-risk task of finding food. If some workers are killed during foraging, by a natural predator for example, the queen simply lays more eggs to replace those lost workers.
Research for potential biocontrols against Little Fire Ants (LFA) is in its infancy and to date, no potential candidates have been identified and tested. The history of biological control efforts against ants in general has met with mixed success. Three or so species of phorid fly have been released in southern USA to combat the Red Imported Fire Ant (not the LFA). They appear to have established well; however, the impact on the Red Imported Fire Ant population has been only slight. Other agents that have been researched for their effect on Red Imported Fire ants include several species of protozoa and a species of fungus. This work has been progressing for some years but at this time has not resulted in a miracle cure. However, together, all the biocontrols will reduce the total Red Imported Fire Ant population somewhat, but not eliminate them.