Predators of the fire ant?

[Ganoderma]

yes, nicotine is a wonderfull animal killer, and the tops of some plants happen to have EXTREMELY high concentrations of it. i used it in canada to get rid of wasps and termites. I didn't react to it. it will be an option. I plan to grow it anyway.

Someone pm'd me offering some advice and a brand name of a ant/termite virus. I may use that if i find it.

Soap is turing up many many dead ants, but htere still seems to be thousands. I really think they are spread under the concrete, which i am really scared of....Its about 40 meters by 10 meters back there. If that happens i guess i have to use chemicals.

I don't really want to call an extirminator....they are very chimical friendly here....like i mentioned they use DDT, among others. I would rahter keep the ants than use soem o fthe very nasty stuff they sell here.

Its not just a sensitivity thing its a moral thing. i hate using harmfull chemicals mainly because most if not all will kill everything else. we have lots of cool bugs like spiders millipedes centipedes geckos etc that i dont want to harm....but the ants eat them anyway so...?

I read about grits, oats, rice etc being used. from what i read it is not true as they often take liquid food to the queen (true?).

The picture here is with a $1 coin. the size is the same as a canadian or american penny. Sorry i couldnt get a clearer shot...camera settings have me more confused than ant colonies....The smaller one is a common worker, the other 2 are soldiers. before i started playing war there were often 5-10 soldiers outside each main hole...some were fair bit bigger than these. but now it seems they are smaller and nto as common (maybe im winning?). The big one is 5mm, even before they didn't get that much bigger than him...maybe up to 7mm?

Had to shrink the image a bit and make it crappier quality...too big otherwise.

Thanks for all this help

 

[Stylopidae]

Gano: even if the nicotine from the tobacco doesn't act as a primary killer of the ants, it will certianly keep them from returning to the same area.

This thread has been a great read. Keep us updated.

 

[Ganoderma]

tobacco kills ;P

i am having to buy cigarettes.....i cant find pipe tobacco.

I have often wondered about other poisonous plants that ants enver seem to nest by. anybody ever tried using plants as pesticides? other than the common peppers, garlic, tobacco etc?

 

[Randolph XX()]

a myth i heard of is using ASH, maybe give it a go

 

[Ganoderma]

ASH? as is burnt wood? we ahve a fire pit back there and they do not colonise near that....hmm

 

[ilovebugs]

maybe it would give them the idea that there is no life there and they will move on...

and again, ants suposedly hate coffee so give 'em some of that.

just make these buggers miserable

you could always get an ant eater

 

[Ganoderma]

ants vs ant eater..hmmm....

my money is on the ants though

there numbers are now greatly reduced, i used some tobacco last night. today they are still there but now they are probably in the hundreds!

 

[Ronj]

They are relocating now and splitting into smaller groups. I would not think it will get any better and hope you don't see an increase with inside activity. I admire your enthusiasm and can picture you running back and forth with the soapy water pouring it down the holes. I still believe in the fire any granular stuff as you only put a very small amount around the mound and you d not have to touch it. In fact, it tells you on the directions not to disturb the ants as this will cause them to pick up and go somewhere else, maybe closer to your home. Keep the pictures coming and good luck!

http://www.amdro.com/Amdro/Tips/index.html

 

[ScorpDude]

Pour petrol over any remaining ants and torch them. Its you or them

 

[Waspman]

I also recommend using Amdro (if you can get it over there). It will cause harm to you if you eat it, stick your nose into the container, rub it on yourself, etc., which any sensible person wouldn't do! It also loses its potency after a rain or two and the chances of it harming other wildlife are very low. It will also be underground and not visible within an hour or two, maybe even less depending on how active the ants are.

The ants take it straight to the queen and the queen dies after eating it. Kills the source of the problem and the ants are very quick about bringing all of it inside the nest.

I realize this is a chemical, but I live in fire ant country. IMO, this is the safest chemical method and most effective overall.

 

[Ant Worker]

"They are relocating now and splitting into smaller groups" That's not a good sign. Ants will commonly spread themselves through a process through budding. Where ants with queens will leave the main colony and start new colonies elsewhere while sometimes staying connected to the mother colony. I personally think your situation is getting worse not better, sorry to bring the bad news to ya.

 

[myrmecophile]

Old thread I know but the ants in the picture are definitely a Solenopsis species, not a clue as to the species though, there is no way to be sure from photographs. Solenopsis are a large diverse genus with many species that are very similar in appearance and a scope is needed for a positive Identification.