Experts share tips on how to dispel fire ants

FLORENCE - Alabamians spend about $6 million annually on pesticides they sprinkle, pour and scatter on fire ant mounds in an attempt to eradicate the tiny insects that are known for their painful bite.

Kathy Flanders, an entomologist for the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, said much of that money is wasted because the chemicals are used improperly or are ineffective for controlling the ants.

"People spend too much money trying to control fire ants," Flanders said Wednesday as she prepared for a workshop about controlling the pests. "They buy either the wrong products or use them at the wrong time of the year."

Randall Armstrong, Lauderdale County coordinator for the extension system, said homeowners are often influenced by the packaging of fire ant control products rather than the active ingredients of the pesticide.

"The prettiest package is not always the best product," Armstrong said. "The chemical companies are going all out trying to cash in the $6 billion spent in the United States each year on fire ant control, and they are coming up with some fancy packaging to get people to buy their products."

Flanders said the cost of the product is not an indication of its ability to control fire ants.

"A lot of times, the most expensive product is not the best choice," Flanders said. "The more economical product is often the best one to use."

Armstrong recommends homeowners and farmers consult with an extension agent or other trained professional when choosing chemicals for controlling fire ants.

Flanders recommends using baits that are scattered on the ground for general fire ant control. She said worker ants gather the bait and take it back into the mound where it is eaten by the queen. When the queen dies, the ant colony collapses.

A key to controlling fire ants is when the pesticide is applied. Flanders said many homeowners begin applying pesticides in late winter or early spring when the first fire ant mounds appear in their lawn.

While the pesticides can kill the ants in those early appearing mounds, it leaves the lawn vulnerable to flying fire ant queens that begin arriving in early May to start a new colony. When fire ant mounds are present in a lawn, the worker ants in those mounds will attack and kill any queens that land nearby. When no worker ants are present, multiple queens can begin new colonies in lawns that will soon become covered with fire ant mounds.

"Sometimes the best control is no control at all," Flanders said. "If they will wait until late May, early June to begin using chemicals, they can obtain better control of the ants."

For homeowners looking to control fire ants without using chemicals, Flanders said pouring 2 to 3 gallons of boiling water onto a mound often works.

In addition to causing problems when they build their mounds - which can be up to 3-feet tall and contain more than 400,000 insects - fire ants are problematic for farmers, Armstrong said. The ants can kill newborn calves and other farm animals by stinging them to death. The mounds can damage hay mowers and other farm equipment that strikes them.

Armstrong said fire ants reached problematic levels in the Shoals in the early 1980s.

Fire ants, a native of South America, arrived in the United States in the early 1900s on ships docking in the Port of Mobile. They have since spread throughout the South.

Tips for controlling fire ants are available at extension system offices throughout Alabama and on the Internet at aces.edu/dept/fireants/.

Dennis Sherer can be reached at 740-5746 or dennis.sherer@TimesDaily.com.