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Article: Putting out the fire: ARS sets up regional programs to combat imported fire ants.(Agricultural Research Service)
- Article from:
- Agricultural Research
- Article date:
- December 1, 2004
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 U.S. Government Printing Office. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Fire ants have been pests in the southern United States since their arrival in 1918 aboard merchant ships coming to Alabama from South America. They found their way onto land and have been multiplying and migrating ever since.
Now fire ants can be found throughout the southeastern United States. It's estimated that up to 40 percent of all people living in urban areas infested with these insects are stung by fire ants each year, and the percentage is even greater in rural communities.
Imported fire ants pose a potentially deadly hazard to people, damage electrical equipment and farm equipment, create unsightly mounds, and alter the population mix of ...