Cassie LeMaster: 0:01

Welcome back to the Extension Connection Podcast. I'm Cassie LeMaster, and today we're tackling a tiny but mighty menace: the fire ant. Fire ants can cause big problems for livestock and horse operations, from painful stings to equipment damage, and even impacting newborn animals. So what are the best methods to protect our pastures, hay fields, and animals from fire ant damage? First, let's understand what we're dealing with. Fire ants are aggressive social insects that build large colonies. In North Carolina, we primarily deal with the red imported fire ant, and a single colony can contain hundreds of thousands of individuals, including one or more egg laying queen. Single queen colonies are territorial in nature, limiting populations to approximately 150 mounds containing about 7 million ants per acre. Multiple queen colonies tend to share resources and are tolerant of other colonies in close proximity. These characteristics may allow for up to 300 mounds and 40 million ants per acre. A well fed queen can lay up to 800 eggs per day and can live seven years or longer. The worker ants are mostly non fertile females, and they live about five weeks. These workers rear the young and scavenge for food for the queen. After the queen lays her eggs, they hatch and become larvae. These develop into pupae and eventually become adult ants, most of which are worker ants. While in the larval stage, the ants play a key role in feeding the fire ant colony. Adult fire ants are not able to swallow solid food. Instead, they carry food back to the colony where they feed it to the largest larvae. These larvae eat the food, digest it, and then regurgitate it in a liquid form that the worker ants are able to consume. This is an important piece to the fire ant control puzzle because to be most effective, our insecticides have to act slow enough to be passed through the whole colony, and then finally to the queen. Fire ants build nests by pushing up soil as they tunnel on the earth. We call these mounds. They can nest in almost any type of soil, but they do prefer open sunny areas, which are often found in our pastures and barnyards. Unlike other kinds of ants, fire ants have no nest entry on the mound itself. They enter the nest via tunnels that may reach several feet or more beyond the mound itself, though it's the most recognizable sign of the presence of fire ants, a mound is not necessary for the survival of the fire. ant colony during especially hot or dry weather colonies tend to move deeper into the ground, foregoing the large mounds that are so obvious in moderate weather. New colonies may not even build a visible mound for months or longer, depending on the soil and weather conditions. This is why mound only treatments are largely ineffective. If you've ever been stung by a fire ant. Then you know their stings are painful. They inject venom that causes a burning sensation and can lead to pustule formation, which can get infected for livestock, especially young or vulnerable animals. These stings cause significant distress illness, and in very rare cases, even death. Newborn calves, lambs and foals are particularly at risk. Fire ants are also a nuisance for farm workers, making tasks like hay harvesting, feeding animals, and general livestock handling more difficult and unpleasant. The mounds themselves can damage farm equipment, particularly mowers and balers leading to costly repairs and downtime. Beyond the direct harm to your animals and humans, fire ants can also disrupt the natural ecosystem of your farm. They're aggressive competitors, often displacing native ant species and other beneficial insects. This can have cascading effects on the food, web and overall biodiversity of your land. So let's talk about control methods. The use of bait is the most effective method of fire ant control. Unlike contact insecticides, which are not selective and do not penetrate mounds easily bait uses the biology and structure of the colony as a means of dispersal. Scavenging workers carry bait to the larvae and the larvae quickly disperse the active ingredient to the queen and the other workers to destroy the mound. The queen must be killed. Baits are also the most effective way to treat large areas like pastures and hay fields. Even if swaths of the pasture are skipped when applying the bait, the ants can still forage up to a hundred feet from their mound and find the bait. Typically, the cost to treat ranges from about$8 to$45 per acre, depending on the product and the application rate. And how many times you treat each season. If your goal is just to reduce the number of fire ant mounds in a pasture, one treatment may be enough. But if you want to eliminate and prevent fire ant mounds around your barn and paddocks, then you may need to treat more than one time per year. Currently there are three active ingredients labeled for use as Fire ant baits in pastures or hay fields, methoprene Pyriproxifen, hydra methylnon. These products are sold through farm supply stores in smaller quantities, up to about 25 pounds, but you may have to special order larger quantities for large acreages. Although these baits can be applied in pastures with grazing animals present, there may be a short waiting period. Before you can cut the hay, be sure to read and follow all labeled directions. Apply bates when ants are actively foraging. This is typically in the spring and fall when temperatures are around 70 degrees or at night during the summer. You can check for foraging activity by placing a greasy potato chip near a mound and seeing if ants gather around it. It's also important to apply baits when the ground is dry and rain is not expected for at least 24 hours. Rainfall will wash away or dissolve your costly bait, reapply if you get significant rain within six to 12 hours of your treatment. For application in large areas, use a calibrated spreader to broadcast the bait. This ensures even distribution and treats all colonies, including those that may not be visible. Proper calibration of your spreader is essential to apply the correct amount of bait and avoid waste or ineffective treatment. Now here's some tips for bait application. Always apply bait as directed, and then keep these in mind. Always read the label at least twice. Once before buying and again before treating. Follow the label directions. Ensure the product is labeled for use in pastures, hay fields, and around livestock barns. Using a product on a site not listed on the label is illegal and can result in harmful consequences. Buy only as much bait as you need. Most baits contain vegetable oils which will go rancid over time. And fire ants do not like rancid bait. Be sure you have the right kind of applicator to do the job. A herd spreader works well for the low application rate used with most fire ant baits, which is typically only one to one and a half pounds to the acre. Calibrate your applicator properly. One to two pounds per acre is not very much bait, so it may look like the spreader is not putting out enough. A granule here or there is probably about right. Follow the calibration directions that come with your spreader. Don't be tempted to apply excessive rates thinking that you'll get a better kill. If you are willing to spend more money for improved control, it's much better to spend it on a second application later in the season. Be aware that baits don't work fast and they won't eliminate every mound in the area, but by one or two months after treatment, you should get around 80% control. If your goal is to maintain a very high level of control around a horse, barn, or other sensitive area. Don't wait until you start seeing new mounds before treating again. Apply baits preventively in spring midsummer and fall. For smaller infestations or around barns and other structures,. individual mound treatments can provide more immediate control. Drenches are liquid insecticides that are mixed with water and poured directly onto the mound. This method can be effective, but requires more labor and may not reach the queen in large mounds. Granular insecticides can also be applied to individual mounds, and these granules are typically watered in to release the insecticide and get it down into the mound. I do want to mention some safety tips. Wear the recommended personal protective equipment or PPE when handling and applying insecticides. Check the label, but this may include gloves, long sleeve shirts, pants, and eye protection. The label will specify the required PPE for each product. Store your pesticides safely out of reach of children and animals and in their own original containers. Proper storage prevents accidental exposure and environmental contamination Beyond chemical control, consider an integrated pest management approach. This involves combining different strategies to minimize fire ant populations while reducing reliance on pesticides. Maintain healthy pastures. So vigorous forage growth can help compete with fire ants and make their environment less favorable to them. They like sunny areas out in the open and dense forage canopy shades that and makes it harder for them to forage. Regular mowing can disrupt fire ant activity and prevent mounds from becoming too large. They tend to move to your fence lines when mowing happens regularly or dragging in an arena type situation. Good sanitation practices around barns and animal housing areas can help reduce fire ant attraction, cleanup spilled, feed, and remove manure to help potential food sources. Clean up spill feed and remove manure to eliminate potential food sources for the ants. In conclusion, fire ants can be a persistent problem for horse owners and livestock producers in North Carolina, but with a strategic approach, you can effectively manage their populations and protect your animals and your operation. Remember, combine chemical control with integrated pest management practices for long-term sustainable solutions.