By:
Chuck Woods (352) 392-1773 x 281Source(s):
John Warner whitefootedant@email.com, (954) 577-6368
Rudolf Scheffrahn rhsc@ufl.edu, (954) 577-6312
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.—A tiny white-footed ant with a big appetite for sweets is the latest nuisance pest for South Florida residents and pest control operators, but a new bait developed by a University of Florida researcher may help stop the home invaders.
Named for their yellowish-white forelegs, the dark-bodied ants are an exotic import from Indonesia. Pest control operators say the ant is difficult to control with regular pesticide sprays, and the insect is spreading rapidly.
“Ten years ago, the white-footed ant was a local pest in Miami-Dade County, but it has spread throughout most of South and Central Florida including Brevard, Broward, Collier, Hendry, Hillsborough, Lee, Martin, Monroe, Orange, Palm Beach, Pinellas, Polk, St. Lucie, Sarasota and Seminole counties,” said John Warner, graduate research assistant with UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. “It’s only a matter of time before it moves further northward.”
White-footed ants, which are about the size of a gnat, do not bite, sting or cause any known structural damage, but their colonies are large and have a big appetite, he said. Thousands of ants are constantly foraging far and wide for new food sources. Main colonies are frequently interconnected with smaller satellite colonies.
“Because of their voracious appetite for sweets, foraging ants usually find just what they’re looking for in and around homes,” Warner said. “Typically, they show up at food sources in large numbers, which makes it easy to track their foraging trails to and from the colony.”
Warner, who is working on the white-footed ant problem with Rudolf Scheffrahn, professor of entomology at UF’s Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, said the ant — Technomyrmex albipes — probably found its way into Florida via shipping containers or imported plants. First identified in Homestead in 1986, the arboreal insects prefer to live in trees and shrubs, but they also build nests in walls, attics and under roof shingles.
Warner said the white-footed ant is very difficult to control with residual sprays that stop cockroaches, termites and other household pests. He also said the pest cannot be controlled effectively with most traditional ant baits.
To stop the foraging ants, he developed a new bait that is highly attractive to ants and can be combined with various toxic substances. Recent tests combining the bait with different toxicants have shown to be a far more effective control than commercial baits now on the market, he said.
In tests, Warner did not starve the ants. Non-toxic food substances were available at all times. As a result, the ants only fed on the toxic bait if it was attractive to them, or they continued to feed on the non-toxic foods.
Warner and Scheffrahn said test results exceeded their expectations. “Our research data show the bait products are superior to anything now on the market, and we are seeking a patent for the bait. The UF will license the technology to a commercial firm,” Warner said.
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