October is “Spot the Ant, Stop the Ant Month”

October is “Spot the Ant, Stop the Ant Month” in Hawaiʻi. This annual campaign asks residents and businesses to be aware that invasive ants must be detected and controlled.  We are asking people to collect ants from their property, freeze them overnight to kill them, then mail or deliver the ants to officials for identification.  Collecting and submitting ants once a year can help us quickly find Little Fire Ants (LFA) or detect new harmful ant species before they become too widespread.  Why not just spray?  To successfully control or even eradicate LFA and other species of ants, you need to kill the queens, not just the worker ants that you see.  And the key to doing that is to know what type of ants you’re dealing with.  For more information on Stop the Ant Month, please visit www.StopTheAnt.org.