Fire Ant Biology
Fire ants do not inflict pain by biting
but they do have a sting that is somewhat similar to that of wasps and
bees. Fire ants hold on with their mouthparts and inject venom into skin
through a smooth - not barbed - stinger. As the ant holds on to its
victim's skin (by biting the skin) it swings around in a circle, injecting its
smooth stinger into the skin numerous times.
Imported fire ants are 1/8 to 1/4 inch in length and are
reddish brown to black. They are social insects and live in colonies which
may have up to 200,000 individuals. Fire ant colonies are made up of a
queen ant, winged males and females (virgin queens),
workers, and brood (which is made up of ant eggs, larvae, and pupae). The
queen fire ant lives in a protected nest which may be several feet deep and can
be several feet away from the visible mound or mounds. There may be
several satellite nests near the main nest and some nests may have more than one
Fireant Elimination Products
As mentioned in previous fireant elimination articles, there are three basic methods that can be used to control these pests as well as various pest control products to use with each method. It should be pointed out that failure to use or combine these products correctly usually results in failure to eliminate the pest from specific areas or to curb their intrusion into areas.
Mound elimination is a term most people associate with treating an individual ant bed with some type of contact insecticide. Treating individual mounds with a granular, liquid or powder product is discouraged unless accompanied with a broadcast treatment of the general area. An excellent example of this procedure is what is called mound drench and area broadcast. First each individual ant bed is thoroughly drenched with an insecticide solution. Mound drenching gives a better, deeper kill of the colony structure and also leaves good residual activity against ants returning to the treated soil than the practice of merely covering each mound with a dry insecticide granule. The next step is to give a good broadcast treatment of the entire area. This technique kills many worker ants and helps to prevent them from moving to another spot in the area to establish new colonies. Broadcast treatments also help cut down the chances that swarming ant reproductives will be successful in establishing their new colonies in the treated area.
Baiting is a very popular method of fireant control. By broadcasting a good, professional fireant bait over an area you are allowing the ants to do most of the work. As foraging workers pick up your baited material they are not instantly killed. Instead, these foraging fireants carry the particles back to the main colony where the bait is transferred through the nursery into the entire colony - including the chamber where the queens are kept for protection and egg laying. Most fireant baits require 1 to 2 pounds of product per acre, when broadcasting the area. These bait broadcast should be done in the spring and fall of the year for optimal control. Baiting around individual mounds during the rest of the year is acceptable, as long as the general broadcast is done twice each year. Avoid dumping piles of fireant bait on a mound, as this will probably stress the entire colony, causing them to merely relocate.
Choosing Products for Fireant Control Fireant Control KitsDrench all existing mounds with Demon EC or Talstar concentrate. At least one gallon of finished solution is required for fire ant mounds, 1/2 gallon for smaller ones. A good rule of thumb is to use one gallon of solution per foot of diameter of mound. For example, a huge mound that is three feet wide (at its base) would require three gallons of finished solution. This ensures that you kill ants deep in the colony structure. Keep pets and children away from treated areas until dry.
Broadcast entire area with Talstar granules. Do not spot treat. Broadcasting this professional granule ensures that all ants on the surface will contact your product. After applying your granules, apply water to the treated area. Water will help place the granules onto the surface of the soil, instead of allowing them to just rest on blades of grass. Keep pets and children off of all treated areas until dry. Talstar granules pose far less hazards to people, pets, wildlife and the environment than most granules on the market, but you must still follow good safety practices -- read and follow all label instructions.
This program may be implemented 1 to 3 times per year, varying with severity of ant infestation.
When treating mounds with any contact insecticide or professional bait, do not disturb mounds before treating. If you do, the colony will immediately take the queen or queens to safety, either deep down in the mound or move them laterally to establish satellite mounds. This stressing of the colony causes more problems than anyone can imagine.
Generally, it takes 1 to 2 gallons of mixed pesticide solution to drench a fire ant mound effectively. A mid-morning drench treatment is best when the sun starts warming up the colony. There are many insecticides that may be used for mound drenching, but we have the seen the best results with the following active ingredients: Bifenthrin (Talstar liquid concentrate, Talstar granules,) Cypermethrin (Cynoff EC, Cynoff WP, Demon EC, Demon WP, Cypermethrin 4 ounce) or Permethrin (Permethrin Pro, Dragnet, Flee.) These materials are all in the synthetic pyrethrin class of chemicals. Synthetics are far more photostable than common organophosphates (Durban, Diazinon, Malathion, Acephate) which can lose their effectiveness in as little as three hours of sunlight. Mounds properly drenched with synthetic pesticides can kill returning or foraging ants for 30 days or more! As an added benefit, synthetic pyrethroids are safer for humans and domestic animals as well as the environment, when used as directed by the label. The best example is Talstar, whose molecules actually bond to soil particles. This means that the material stays where you apply it and does not leach out into undesirable locations.
The use of professional ant baits is a very thorough method of control, slowly killing the entire colony. Baits work best when used in the spring and early summer. When the weather gets hot and dry, baits are generally ineffective for fire ant control. However, fire ant baiting has two drawbacks: cost and length of control time. For instance, baiting an entire area will kill the existing ant colonies but will not always control new ant colonies invading from nearby areas that were not baited properly. Also, most people with fire ant problems live on very large lots -- 2 acres or better. This involves a great deal of bait at a premium price.
The most successful baiting practice for fire ant control on turf is to use granular baits such as Ascend or Maxforce Granular (or Extinguish Fire Ant Bait when baiting graze lands) in the early spring followed by soil drenches 4 to 6 weeks later if needed. Broadcast granular bait applications are most effective; however, it may take 4 to 6 weeks to give control. Early spring application is ideal because it controls recently developed queens before they leave on their nuptial flights and establish new colonies. Killing the queens is the only way to eliminate fire ant colonies. Follow-up granular bait applications usually are necessary in mid-summer and another one in the fall.
Apply baits when the ground is dry and when ground temperatures are between 70 and 90 °F with no forecast of rain. Apply baits around the base of mounds and also broadcast the entire areas where ants are seen foraging.. Baits are picked up by foraging ants looking for food. The ants take the bait back to the ant colony; it passes through the food chain and is fed to the queen ants. Granular bait recommendations are listed below.
In summer and fall, apply bait in the afternoon when temperatures are cooler because baits may rapidly degrade on hot, sunny days. By the time ants pick up the bait, the heat may have broken down the active ingredient, losing its effectiveness.