Home › General News › Article

Red imported fire ants have run rampant for 16 years, their bites are extremely painful, and the wrong SOP only makes them multiply the more you kill them; experts say a dedicated law should be enacted for their control

General News 0 views
Red imported fire ants have run rampant for 16 years, their bites are extremely painful, and the wrong SOP only makes them multiply the more you kill them; experts say a dedicated law should be enacted for their control

Red imported fire ants have run rampant in Taiwan for many years and still cannot be eradicated, frequently biting members of the public. Northern Taiwan's New Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, along with the offshore island of Kinmen, are the hardest-hit areas. In April this year, Miaoli even reported an ant disaster covering more than a thousand hectares. The ant disaster in the north cannot be stopped, and at the same time the southward spread of red imported fire ants must be blocked. Domestic control of red imported fire ants has now entered its 16th year, yet the control work remains difficult.

Experts point out that the lack of a dedicated law and sufficient resources makes it hard to carry out control properly. Funding for red imported fire ant control in each county and city is severely insufficient, and even the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine at the central level is quite stretched, resulting in an insufficient number of pesticide applications or bait placements each year. In addition, poor cross-ministerial coordination, frequent turnover of frontline personnel, and insufficient public awareness all make control work difficult to carry out properly.

Shipping containers move through ports worldwide, and red imported fire ants invade along with them

Red imported fire ants are native to South America. In the 1930s they invaded Alabama in the United States, and with the construction of highways they continued to spread at a rate of 198 kilometers per year. Under global trade, they spread around the world along with shipping containers. In the 90th year of the Republic of China (2001) they crossed the Pacific to Australia, and in the 92nd year of the Republic of China (2003) they began to run rampant across Taiwan.

"Shipping containers are the key to the spread of red imported fire ants internationally," said Lin Tsung-chi, CEO of the National Red Imported Fire Ant Control Center and professor in the Department of Biology at National Changhua University of Education. Most people believe that soil clods or plants contaminated by ant colonies are loaded onto containers without inspection, causing the cross-border transfer of red imported fire ants. Lin Tsung-chi said that in fact the space underneath containers is the main cause, because it is concealed and hard to detect, and red imported fire ants, which prefer dry environments, build their nests there. In 2002 Taiwan joined the WTO and began frequent international trade exchanges, large numbers of containers started moving in and out of ports, and red imported fire ants invaded along with them.

With technological development, sea freight voyages became shorter, and in addition container bottoms were raised on supports. At that time there was no procedure for cleaning the exterior of containers, so ant nests drifted safely across the sea, coming ashore starting from ports in southern Taiwan. The affected environments cover farmland, schools, parks, military camps, airports, roadside green spaces and more.

Lin Tsung-chi, CEO of the National Red Imported Fire Ant Control Center and professor in the Department of Biology at National Changhua University of Education (photo / Lin Yi-chun)

Invading Taiwan for 16 years, still causing harm today

Red imported fire ants were first discovered between September and October of the 92nd year of the Republic of China (2003) in the Taoyuan and Chiayi areas, and they build nests in farmland, gardens, parks, school playgrounds, wasteland and other places. Red imported fire ants are omnivorous; they prey on earthworms in the soil and soft-bodied insects in fields, and also gnaw on crop seeds, tender stems and leaf buds. They will even sting people who come near their mounds, and farmers who often work in the fields suffer greatly. Once stung, there is a pain like being burned by fire, followed by blisters; people with sensitive constitutions may develop inflammation or even need to be taken to hospital.

Red imported fire ants have still not been eradicated in Taiwan. According to data from the National Red Imported Fire Ant Control Center, they are currently distributed across 4 counties and cities, in a total of 23 areas. Among them, the hardest-hit county or city is Taoyuan City, where only Fuxing District has not fallen, and traces of red imported fire ants are found in all other areas.

Related Articles