Research Paper

Cristina Gonzalez

Mr. Skipper

Encounters 8

March 1, 2023

Invading the World, Red Fire Ants

Introduction  

Have you ever stepped on one of the red fire ant mounds? If you have, did you notice what seems to be millions of ants leaving the mound? The first thing people usually think about when they think about the Red Fire Ant is usually some sort of bad memory or they just remember always seeing them everywhere. The red fire ant has impacted our world in big ways. They are classified as an invasive species and that is very bad for our environment. They have infested areas like “lawns, gardens, school yards, parks, and roadside ” (“Red Imported Fire Ant”). Red fire ants are a very large species that keeps on growing. Other than the fact that they harm millions of acres of land they also harm humans. They have a very painful bite and since they are such a big species more people can get hurt. The red fire ant needs to be stopped for the sake of ourselves and the environment. 

Taxonomy and Description  

The Red Fire Ant is a very ugly creature and it is bad for our environment. They are very small animals but what they do to our earth is very big in a bad way. Fire ants' size range from “3 to 6 millimeters long” (“Red Imported Fire Ants”). Red fire ants get their name from their beautifully colored bodies which are red.  Red fire ants are omnivores, which means that they are both carnivores and herbivores. They are very aggressive and when they sting their venom can kill their prey even if it is “larger than themselves” (“Fact Sheet Red Fire Ants”). The red fire ant has “3 clypeal teeth” this is different from most ants because other ants only have “2 lateral teeth” (Greenberg). They live in mounds and inside there is a queen or queens that run the mound. The queens are responsible for laying the eggs in the mounds and all the other ants are males. Mounds are “dome-shaped” and can be one foot high. Most times they build them on places like grass but sometimes they do it on harder surfaces like concrete. To distinguish these animals from other ants it is very easy. They have very aggressive behavior when they are disturbed and they are willing to sting anything they come across even if it is a human (Greenberg).

Introduction to non-native habitat 

Red fire ants have primarily traveled in the Americas.  They originated in South America and they have spread ever since. They have spread to The United States, China, Taiwan, Japan, The Philippines, and Australia (“Fact Sheet Red Fire Ants”). They were introduced to the United States of America in the 1930s through the ports in Alabama “in the soil used for ships ballast” (“Fire Ant Frequently Asked Questions”).  More and more fire ants arrived from the ships and they have impacted our world badly. Now fire ants are everywhere and it isn't rare to be stung by one. They usually live in grassy places but you can find them on concrete, roads, and in soil. There are also some red fire ants that are “native to the United States” ( “Fire Ant Frequently Asked Questions”). Fire ants are one of the biggest species in the world and they are also invading it. They invade more than 2/3 of the state of Texas and they are found mostly in urban areas (“Fire Ant Frequently Asked Questions”). Red fire ants also live near water. For example lakes, rivers, and ponds. They have also spread throughout the Mississippi river and the Rio Grande (“Fire Ant Frequently Asked Questions”). This means that all of north and south America is being affected by the fire ants except for one state which is Alaska because it is very cold in that state and red fire ants can not survive there. Before all this, Red Fire Ants have been invading the other continents which are Europe, Asia, and Australia. They arrived in north and south America now and have not yet reached  Africa. They have also not reached Antarctica and they probably won't for the same reason that they aren't in Alaska. These ants will soon find a way to be in every place in the world and soon humans won't know what to do because of them. If these fire ants aren't stopped there is no telling what will happen to our world (“Fire Ant Frequently Asked Questions”).

Adverse Effects 

Red fire ants have caused many things that have affected our planet economically, ecologically, and environmentally. On the economic side of this situation, there is a very drastic cost that these animals cause in the United States. They have caused “6.7 billion dollars in annual damages” (“Other Impacts of Fire Ants”) because of the sting they produce when alerted. The Red fire ants stinging humans caused many medical bills to occur and over the years it leaves a record of the economical impact fire ants have caused in the United States. Ecologically and environmentally they have affected the earth and the animals living in it. The mounds they create “can ruin lawns and they can displace native ants from their habitat”(“Red Imported fire ants”). The ants they displace are not as bad as the red fire ant but making them move causes more parts of the world to be filled with ants. Red fire ants also affect other animals around them; one example can be birds. They are known to “eat newly hatched chicks and unhatched ones as well”(“Red imported fire ants”). Since there are a lot of red fire ants, the baby chicks and unhatched chicks are at stake for many bad things to happen to them. If more and more fire ants decide to go after chicks soon it will be common for them to be their number one meal. If these ants don't find another source of food there is no telling the future of this species. Red fire ants are also affecting agriculture in the United States. The mounds that they produce to live in interfere with “machines used in agricultural production”(“Other Impacts of Fire Ants”). This affects the workers in the fields and it slows down the process to produce fruits and vegetables. The machines also sometimes need to be fixed and that can also affect the economy of the company farming and it can also affect the workers. Red fire ants also feed on fish. In an autopsy conducted on fish, it was found that their “stomachs were packed with ants” (“Other Impacts of Fire Ants”). This shows that red fire ants are a critical threat to not only the economy but also to fellow animals around them.

Conclusion

The red fire ant is an animal that roams the earth and invades it. They are one of the biggest species in the world and they have taken over more than a “million acres” of land (“Fact Sheet Red Fire Ants”). This is not the only problem with the red fire ant. They have a mortal sting and they have caused a lot of medical problems. The biggest thing that is being done about these many problems is “spraying their mounds” and “injecting” mounds (Red Imported Fire Ant). Destroying their mounds is destroying their home and that helps get rid of some of their population. When they spray them it is very bad for the ants but in the end, it is very good for the earth and the environment. This is one of the only solutions that has been found to work the best, but “biological controls” are still being investigated (Red Imported Fire Ant). “Ministers from every territory and the federal government” have decided to do a “ten-year $411.4 million eradication program” (“Fact Sheet Red Fire Ants”) There is also some hope that there is a “natural enemy” that can help in the “eradication” of these species (Red Imported Fire Ant). Something has to be done fast. If they can find one it is very likely for the Red fire ant to not be an invasive species anymore and problems with this animal can be resolved. 

Works Cited        

“Fact Sheet Red Fire Ants.” Invasives Species Council, Aug 2017, invasives.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Fact-Sheet-Red-Fire-Ants.pdf.

“Fire Ant Frequently Asked Questions.” Texas Imported  Fire Ant Research and Management Project, Texas A&M AgriLife Research, fireant.tamu.edu/manage/faq/.

Global Invasive Species Database, ISSG, 2010, www.iucngisd.org/gisd/species.php?sc=77. 

Greenberg, L. et. al. “Red Imported Fire Ant.” UC IPM, University of California, 13 Dec ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7487.html.

“Other Impacts of Fire Ants.”Ant Pest, Extension Foundation,ant-pests.extension.org/. 

“Red Imported Fire Ants.” Texas Invasive Species Institute, The Texas State University System, www.tsusinvasives.org/home/database/solenopsis-invicta.