U.S. flagAn official website of the United States government
                    Here's how you know **Official websites use .gov**
                            
                            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
 **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
                            
                            A **lock** (                            
                              A locked padlock                                                      
                            
                            ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Menu Agricultural Research Service
						
                    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 Tropical Crop and Commodity Protection Research: Hilo, HI
 close



    Research

                    Research Projects
                                    Publications
                                    Collaborations
                                    News
                People

                    Staff Listing
                                    Careers


        


                    Scientist Pages
                        Acebes-Doria, Angelita
                                    Cha, Dong
                                    Follett, Peter
                                    Johnson, Melissa
                                    Liang, Peishih
                                    Manoukis, Nicholas
                                    Siderhurst, Matthew
                                    Sun, XiuxiuSearch small
                    Search
            
            ARS Home
                                About ARS
                                Contact Us




ARS Home Pacific West Area Hilo, Hawaii Daniel K. Inouye U.S. Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center Tropical Crop and Commodity Protection Research Research Publications at this Location





- ARS National Programs
- Search for a scientific manuscript
- Search for a research project
- ARS Software
- Programs and Projects
- Collaborations
- Subjects of Investigation
- Publications

Title:   Author  item
                                            SOUZA, EVANN - UH - HILOitem
                                            Follett, Peteritem
                                            PRICE, DON - UH - HILOitem
                                            STACY, ELIZABETH - UH - HILO
  Submitted to: Journal of Economic Entomology
                                    Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 3/5/2008
                                    Publication  Date: 8/1/2008
                                    Citation: Souza, E., Follett, P.A., Price, D., Stacy, E. 2008. Field Control of the Invasive Ant Wasmannia auropunctata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a Tropical Fruit Orchard in Hawaii. J. Econ. Entomol. 101:1068-1074.Interpretive Summary: The little fire ant (LFA), Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) is an invasive ant that forms supercolonies when it successfully invades new areas. Since its introduction in 1999, LFA has  invaded many agricultural sites. Amdro (hydramethylnon; in bait stations), Esteem (pyriproxyfen; broadcast bait), and Conserve (spinosad; ground spray) were tested for their efficacy against LFA in a rambutan and mangosteen orchard by making biweekly treatments for 16 weeks. The Amdro and Esteem treatments showed a 60-90% reduction in ant numbers. No plots for any of the treatments achieved 100% reduction.  Many LFA were found nesting in protected sites in the orchard trees which may have compromised the ground-based control methods. Density estimates from the orchard floor indicated the LFA supercolony may exceed 95 million ants per acre.
                                Technical Abstract: The little fire ant (LFA), Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) is an invasive ant that forms supercolonies when it successfully invades new areas. LFA was first reported in Hawaii in 1999 and has since invaded a variety of agricultural sites including nurseries, tropical fruit farms, macadamia orchards, and pastures. Amdro (hydramethylnon; in bait stations), Esteem (pyriproxyfen; broadcast bait), and Conserve (spinosad; ground spray) were tested for their efficacy against LFA in a rambutan and mangosteen orchard by making biweekly treatments for 16 weeks. Amdro and Esteem treatments showed a significant reduction in LFA on weeks 12 and 16 compared with untreated control treatments. On week 12, LFA were significantly higher in the Conserve treatment than the Amdro and Esteem treatments, but significantly lower than the untreated control treatments. No plots for any of the treatments achieved 100% reduction. Homoptera on branch terminals were significantly lower in the Amdro and Esteem treatment on week 16. Many LFA were found nesting in protected sites in the orchard trees which may have compromised the ground-based control methods. Absolute density estimates from shallow core samples taken from the orchard floor indicated the LFA supercolony exceeded 95 million ants per acre.


Return to top


Connect with ARS Sign up


ARS Home
                            USDA.gov
                            Plain Writing
                            Policies & Links
                            Civil Rights Statements
                            FOIA
                            Accessibility Statement
                            Privacy Policy
                            Non-Discrimination Statement
                            Quality of Information
                            USA.gov
                            WhiteHouse.gov