Introduced to Australia over 20 years ago, fire ants are known for their painful stings. A serious agricultural pest, they will eat anything from plants, insects and decomposing animals to food staples in your kitchen. Avoid getting stung by feisty fire ants by reading our latest Hivemind article.
What questions will this article answer?
What is a fire ant?
Reddish-brown in colour, fire ants cause painful stings and are considered as a major agricultural pest.
Problems caused by fire ants
They disrupt outdoor activities, damage your garden, cause painful stings and allergic reactions, disturb the ecosystem and contaminate your home.
How to identify a fire ant outbreak
You may notice more fire ants around, ant trails, fire ant mounds and droppings.
Ways to prevent a fire ant infestation
Regular yard maintenance, proofing off entry points, removing sources of food and water and using ant baits are the best ways to keep fire ants away.
Professional fire ant control
Our technicians are highly trained to safely use direct nest injections as well as applying ant baits.
Choose Allstate for effective and long-lasting fire ant control
We’re available 24/7 to all suburbs of Adelaide to assist you with fire ant assessments and treatments.
What is a fire ant?
Native to South America, but introduced to Australia over 20 years ago, fire ants are considered a serious agricultural pest.
They are reddish-brown coloured, with a rear segment that is usually dark brown and can range from 2-6mm in size, depending on their role in the colony. Winged fire ants can fly up to 5km away from the nest to expand the colony.
Known to feed on various crops including corn and soy, fire ants also have an appetite for okra, potato tubers and citrus fruit. However, these hungry insects are experts at scavenging insects, honeydew produced by aphids, flies, fly larvae, decomposing animals, seeds, as well as oily and sugary products.
With a unique behaviour of swarming their prey, they have strong jaws to secure their victims, and use painful stingers to inject venom. They can be particularly aggressive if their nest is disturbed, and are able to sting multiple times.
Fire ants can survive all year long, in climates that range from below freezing, to the relentless heat of droughts and even high rainfall.
Problems caused by fire ants
Although they are small, fire ants can cause a range of big problems. Here’s how:
Damage to your garden
With a big appetite for plants in your garden, fire ants feeds on plants such as corn and germinating seeds, potato tubers, okra and citrus fruit.
Disrupting outdoor activities
With the potential for venomous stings, you and your family will want to avoid disturbing fire ants and their mounds when outside. They can quickly swarm and sting their victims multiple times, especially when they feel threatened.
Painful stings
When stung by a fire ant, you may experience pain and a burning sensation, and be left with a swollen welt.
Allergic reactions
In some people, fire ant venom can trigger allergies, causing itchy rashes, and even possibly anaphylactic reactions.
Contamination
With their unhygienic foraging habits, fire ants will eat anything from decomposing dead animals, animal waste to food in your pantry. They will look for food and water from toilets, drains and sewers, as well as your kitchen sink. This means that they can potentially collect and spread a range of bacteria, germs and diseases inside your home, including salmonella, E.coli, fungi and staphylococcus and streptococcus infections.
Disturbing the ecosystem
With their aggressive behaviour, fire ants have been known to threaten native species of ants, dominating and disrupting the ecological balance of your yard over time.
Keep your family safe from fire ants. Speak to an expert today.
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How to identify a fire ant outbreak
Getting stung is definitely not pleasant, so it’s important know how to spot a fire ant infestation as quickly as possible. Here are the most common signs that you may have a fire ant problem:
You’re noticing a lot of fire ants around
If there’s more fire ants than usual, especially if they’ve managed to make it indoors, there’s a good chance that you may have an infestation on your hands.
Ant trails
If you see fire ants marching in lines along a well-defined path, this means that fire ants are foraging for food and living in a nest nearby, typically within 30m away.
Fire ant mounds
Found out in the open and resembling piles of disturbed dirt, with a flat or rounded top, fire ant nests can reach between 30-40cm high and 30-90cm in diameter. Unlike other ant species, there isn’t a clear hole or entry point at the apex.
Fire ants usually enter and exit their nest through underground tunnels with entry points that may be up to 30 feet away from the mound.
Depending on the weather, fire ant nests can look different. In warm climates or during drought, their nests might appear as small areas of loose soil. When the temperature drops, or there is rainfall, their nests may be more obvious and look larger in size.
Droppings
You may notice small granules, like sand or coffee grounds, which are brown, beige or black in colour scattered around your home or yard.
Ways to prevent a fire ant infestation
We recommend the following tasks to help you prevent fire ants from setting up a nest in your yard.
Regular yard maintenance
Clear away fallen or rotten fruit and vegetables, and keep plants, bushes and vegetation neatly trimmed, particularly ones that are growing near your home. Remove piles of debris and leaves and keep your lawns tidy to reduce hiding spots. Make sure that rubbish bins are tightly sealed, secured and covered.
Don’t forget to inspect potted plants, mulch, hay and manure for signs of fire ants.
Cover all entry points
Being small in size, fire ants can squeeze through tiny gaps, cracks, crevices and holes to gain access inside your home. We recommend carefully inspecting your home for these tiny openings and sealing them off.
Remove access to food and water
Fire ants can detect resources from a long distance away, so it’s best to keep food stored away, and avoid leaving bowls of water out in the open for long periods. This includes pet food. Keep your home clean by wiping down tabletops, benchtops, stoves and sinks after use, and clear away dirty dishes. Immediately clean up spills, remove crumbs from floors and furniture by vacuuming, mopping and sweeping.
Ant baits
There are several readily available products to protect your home from being invaded by fire ants. These are available from your local hardware store, and can include ant baits and insecticide sprays.
For expert advice on managing fire ants, contact Allstate today
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Professional fire ant control
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, a fire ant outbreak can be hard to manage without professional assistance. At Allstate, we have a range of targeted treatments, which are approved by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) for safe use around your home.
Fire ant baits
Once consumed by foraging fire ants, the insecticide-laced bait is taken back to the colony and transmitted to other ants to destroy the colony.
Soaked in soybean oil, these baits are made of 1-2mm sized granules of corn grit and can be sprinkled near the nest itself, or scattered around the yard. Depending on the extent of the outbreak, way may use different types of baits. They contain the following chemical ingredients to stop ants in their tracks:
- Insect growth regulator baits are made from s-methoprene or pyriproxyfen. They are effective in reducing the ant population by stopping their life cycle and can take up to 3-4 months to have their full effect
- Fast acting insecticide usually consists of indoxacarb or hydramethylnon and pyriproxyfen. It typically takes only 1-4 weeks to reach their maximum effect
Direct nest injection
As the name suggests, we can directly apply fipronil, a strong insecticide liquid, to fill all the chambers of the fire ant nest as a fast solution to treat an outbreak. However, the treated area must not be disturbed for 24 hours, and the ground and its surrounds must remain dry and undisturbed for at least 7 days.
Choose Allstate for effective and long-lasting fire ant control
With your calendar filled with all sorts of outdoor activities to enjoy the last of the warm weather, there’s nothing worse than having the threat of a fire ant outbreak to spoil the fun. At Allstate, we’re here to help protect you and your family from fire ants.
Since 1986, Allstate has helped thousands of homes, businesses and industrial properties prevent and treat pest outbreaks. Available 24/7 to all suburbs of Adelaide, our highly trained and fully equipped pest technicians use innovative solutions and treatments which are safe for children, pets and the environment.
With payment plans available, you won’t need to delay any urgent fire ant treatment anymore. Ask one of our friendly pest consultants for reliable advice at any time.