SOUTHWEST VA. – Virginia agricultural officials have expanded the state’s red imported fire ant quarantine to include Pittsylvania County, Danville, and Halifax County as warming temperatures accelerate the spread of these invasive insects.
The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) implemented the expanded quarantine measures to contain fire ants, which pose risks to both human health and agricultural operations.
“The whole purpose of the quarantine is to slow the spread and to prevent the movement of any type of article that is capable of moving the fire ant from the quarantine to uninfested parts of Virginia,” VDACS State Plant Regulatory Official Daniel Gianino said.
The ants like to travel on items like sod, hay, farm equipment and other vehicles. The quarantine restricts the exporting of materials like sod and hay from infested counties and cities, unless inspected by VDACS or in an agreement to take precautions and do self-inspections.
While fire ants have existed in Virginia for over 35 years, climate changes have created more favorable conditions for their survival.
“When you have warmer winters, the ground temperature doesn’t get as low, so there’s a better survivability of the mounds,” Virginia Tech Entomologist Eric Day said.
The Red Imported Fire Ant (which is mainly causing the infestation) originally came to the U.S. from South America back in 1930s on cargo imported at ports in Mobile, Alabama. Now they’ve spread up through states like Tennesse and North Carolina to Virginia.
Fire ant quarantines aren’t new to Virginia. In fact, there’s been a quarantine in the Tidewater area since 2009. The continued spread, however, has led to the quarantine being extended to many of the counties on the North Carolina border, creeping ever closer to the southwest region.
Fire ant colonies can contain anywhere from 10,000 to hundreds of thousands of ants. These aggressive insects both bite and sting, leaving distinctive white bumps that can trigger allergic reactions in some people.
For those experiencing bites or stings, health officials recommend:
- Avoid scratching the affected area
- Wash thoroughly with soap and water
- Apply ice to reduce swelling
- Seek medical attention if the bites/stings are severe
The ants also pose a risk to livestock. When livestock, especially babies, are lying on the ground and sleeping, ants can crawl all over them and bite and sting them, which in multitude can be very dangerous.
Property owners who discover fire ant mounds can eliminate colonies through a targeted approach combining insecticide applications with bait treatments.
“Spray insecticide on top of that (the mound). You really want to draw them out of that colony and go to that bait. They’ll take that bait back down to the colony for a full colony elimination,” Daniel Dore, Sales and Service Manager at Big Man Exterminating, said.
These can be found at most local hardware stores.
VDACS also requests that those outside of quarantine zones report any mounds found as a way of helping them keep track of the spread. You can find their site here.