South Carolina summers, while incredibly hot, are a wonderful time to spend outdoors enjoying your yard. Unfortunately, summers are also the prime season for fire ants. These small, aggressive ants can quickly turn a pleasant moment in the backyard into a painful experience! Their painful stings will leave you frustrated and hurting, but what do you really know about these ants? Today we’re taking a deep dive into what fire ants are, their lifecycles, and what do about them!
What Are Fire Ants?
Red Imported Fire Ants, commonly known as just fire ants, are notorious across the southeast, but where did they come from? Fire ants are not native to the US! They were first introduced to the US through the port of Mobile, Alabama in the 1940’s. In their write up on the pest, Oklahoma State identified that fire ants we know originated in Brazil. Once these ants were in the states, they quickly spread across the entire southeast and are now a staple part of most yards in the summertime.
Fire ants are mainly a nuisance pest during the warmer months of the year. That means that for South Carolina, it’s not uncommon to see them start to come out in the early spring and stay active through the late fall! Since fire ants thrive on heat and humidity, South Carolina is a perfect state for them. Their population will be at it’s biggest in the warmest months, but they will continue to spread their reach until it gets too cold for them.
How Do Fire Ants Spread?
Fire ants are prevalent throughout the southeast, but they can live anywhere with sufficient food, warmth, and humidity. The main factors stopping their spread is the colder seasons to the north and the drier climates to the west. Fire ants can be easily transported by humans accidentally both on vehicles and in goods which means that can be artificially introduced to new regions.
Once fire ants have been introduced to a region, they can quickly spread. Fire ants generally spread through potential queens mating flights. These queens generally fly for one mile or less, but there have been recorded flights of up to 12 miles! Once these potential queens land, they shed their wings and begin to dig. These queens then excavate areas for their eggs and begin forming a new colony. After the first eggs are laid, the workers emerge within 3 to 4 weeks. With this first wave emerging, the colony is now in full growth cycle and will rapidly expand.
As the colony expands, they will continue to tunnel and burrow. When they do this, the fire ants bring the excess dirt back up to the surface and begin piling it up. This is mound on top is not their primary home but rather the extra dirt from all of their tunnelling. As they grow in population, the mound will expand and can reach up to 18 inches tall. When a nest reaches maturation, they can contain between 100,000 to 500,000 workers as well as 100’s of winged forms and multiple queen forms.
During this growth and expansion, fire ant colonies can split off by sending potential queens further away to start their own colonies or they may create another mound nearby. When these colonies spread locally, they can form super colonies that work together. An acre of open land that has single queen colonies on it can hold 40-150 separate colonies, but an acre with multiple queen colonies, a super colony, can hold 200 or more mounds with up to 40 million fire ants in that single acre. With the sheer volume of ants that these colonies produce, it’s no wonder that they can quickly take over your yard! Dealing with fire ants isn’t always a simple task.
How Do You Deal With Fire Ants?
By the time you start seeing fire ant mounds in your yard, the colony is already established. At this point it is going to be a challenge to remove them. To fully deal with the problem it will take some dedication and it won’t guarantee that they won’t come back the next year. Consistent chemical treatment is the only way to make sure that your lawn stays fire ant free in the long run.
If you are only seeing a single mound, there may be time to manage it before the infestation gets too severe. Baits can help reduce the population and potentially kill a mound! If you decide to spread some bait on your own, make sure that you read the label and then apply it around dawn or sunset. These are the best times to make sure that the bait is gathered and returned to the colony. After a single bait treatment, you will need to continue applying until the colony has been destroyed.
Fire ants can be persistent, and if you’re struggling to deal with them, don’t hesitate to call in a professional. Our team of techs have been dealing with fire ants for over 20 years, and we know how to make sure that a colony is defeated. With proper treatments, consistency, and enough time, your yard can be protected from fire ants.
Fire ants can be an annoying concern during the summer. Understanding their patterns and how to deal with them can help avoid fire ant frustrations. If you ever need help dealing with them, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team. We are always available and happy to help keep your yard protected from pests!
