How Have Fire Ants Impacted the Environment?

Fire Ants' Positive Impacts on the Environment

• In the Southeastern United States where sugar cane or cotton is grown, fire ants eat the natural predators of these plant,s including the sugarcane borer larva and the lepidopteran larva that feed on cotton plants. In areas where cattle and sheep have to deal with the diseases spread by fleas and ticks, fire ants eat the larval and pupal stage fleas and ticks and can reduce the chance of particularly nasty diseases, like Lyme disease, from taking hold.

Fire Ants and Helpful Insects

• If the fire ants would stop at eating the bad insects, there would be only minor problems related to them. They don't. Fire ants will also kill insects that pollinate plants. Certain pest insects that destroy fruit and vegetable crops are closely guarded and protected by fire ant colonies because these pests secrete a sweet tasting honeydew substance that fire ants eat. This becomes a problem not only for the health of the plants but also for the workers that harvest the fruits and vegetables.

Fire Ants and Livestock

• Fire ants are attracted to mucous areas like the eyes, mouth and noses of young livestock animals. They are also attracted to wounds. The animal gets irritated at the ants crawling around its face and ends up getting stung repeatedly, which can cause blindness, swelling and suffocation. The ants also find the livestock food and water sources and sting any animal that comes to feed. This negative reinforcement of associating the feeding and drinking areas with getting stung can cause a livestock herd to starve or become dehydrated.

Fire Ants and Produce

• In agricultural areas, fire ants feed on seeds, roots and the tender stems of some plants. This affects the growth of these food products and can reduce the quality of the harvested products. Fruit and vegetable shipments are suspected of being the cause of the nearly worldwide spread of fire ants into areas that otherwise would not have them naturally.

Fire Ants and Other Animals

• Fire ants are omnivorous, which means they eat both plants and animals in order to survive. They can significantly reduce the population of native turtles, deer and small birds. With an environment in balance, the reduction in turtles means an overpopulation of fish or other animals eaten by turtles. A herd of deer may be forced to move to another location due to an infestation of fire ants. Birds may lose their defenseless young to the ants that invade their nests.

Fire Ants' Total Effects on the Environment

• Despite the few benefits of fire ants, overwhelmingly these creatures are bad for crops, livestock and wild animals. These negative effects multiply exponentially when dealing with an environment that has had the misfortune of having fire ants accidentally imported. Recent efforts to control the impact of the fire ant on the environment include the release of Phorid flies, also known as decapitating flies, into the Arkansas area. These are the only known natural enemy of the fire ant. The results have not come in as of 2011 as to the success of these efforts.