THE WORST INVASIVE ANTS IN THE PACIFIC What

THE WORST INVASIVE ANTS IN THE PACIFIC

What is an invasive ant? An ant that is introduced outside its home range that damages the human or natural environment The picture shows red imported fire ants travelling over floodwaters on an uprooted tree

Are all ants invasive? No! • Only some introduced ants cause problems • Some ants are only bad in high numbers • Most ants do good things for the environment. They cycle nutrients in soil and eat the larvae of household pests like flies and cockroaches The ant in the picture is called a trap jaw ant. It has been introduced into the Pacific but does not cause problems (although it can bite!)

Why are some ants bad? Clockwise from left: A little fire ant biting; skin rash caused by yellow crazy ants; Sea bird chick covered by African big-headed ants; a child stung on the cheek by a fire ant; ants ‘farm’ scale insects, which damage crops

The five WORST invasive ANTS in the Pacific African big-headed ant Red imported fire ant Little fire ant Argentine ant Yellow crazy ant You can’t tell just by looking at these five ant species that they cause worse problems than any other ants

The five WORST invasive ANTS in the Pacific African big-headed ant Red imported fire ant Little fire ant Argentine ant Yellow crazy ant

Ant life cycle Ants go through a number of different stages from egg to adult Queens lay eggs Eggs hatch into larvae Larvae grow until they make a coccoon and become pupae Adult ants emerge from the pupae Ants are social insects. This means that workers look for food, tend the young and protect the nest One or more queens lay eggs that develop into new workers, queens and males Males mate with queens and then die

Activity: ant hunting! Have a look for some ants outside. Follow them back to their nest. Dig up the nest (make sure the ants don’t sting or bite first though)! Can you see workers? Are there any queens? Do they have wings? Can you tell apart the workers from the queens? Can you see eggs, larvae and pupae? Count up the number of different life stages in the nest.

Where did the ants come from? ? Yellow crazy ant African big headed ant Little fire ant Red imported fire ant Argentine ant Although queen ants have wings, no ant is able to fly the long distances between Pacific countries

How do ants get from place to place? © Meghan Cooling It only takes one queen ant to start an invasion. They may be hiding almost anywhere. Whole nests can be hidden in soil around potted plants or in a single coconut or macadamia nut! What other places might they be hiding?

Where might we find invasive ants? Where they come into the country • Ports • On ships • Airports • Unloading areas • Storage areas

How do we find ants when they arrive? Biosecurity officers check incoming goods at airports and ports to detect invasive ants

How do we find ants when they arrive? Lures (sugar, peanut butter) placed in ports attract ants

How do we find ants when they arrive? Make communities aware of the problems ants can cause. Community members can be on the lookout for invasive ants

Activity: attracting ants You can use lures to attract ants Make some lures Use a range of different foods: sweet (honey, jam or toilet paper soaked in sugar water) and savoury (fish, peanut butter, corned beef) Put a fingernail sized blob of food on pieces of card or in plastic cups Make up around 30 lures – the more the better Leave the lures in different places outside for 15 -30 minutes in shaded spots around the school grounds

What food did the ants like best? number of ants Ant food preferences 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 food honey peanut butter sugar water tinned cat food Type of food Make a histogram (or other chart) of the number of ants on different foods, and the different types of ants you found (if there were different types)

Activity: stop the ants! • How might you stop the ants from getting into the country? • Work together in groups to make a list of ways to stop invasive ants getting into the country

Activity: design a poster Design a poster to let your community know about the ant Or Design a poster to let tourists know about ants they might be bringing in