Invasive fire ants wreak havoc on Hawaiian agriculture

MAUI, Hawaii, Dec. 29 (UPI) -- The battle to protect Hawaii's farmlands and natural ecosystems from the onslaught of red ants has been ongoing since 1999 when the species was first discovered on the Big Island.

The pestilent ant -- native to South America -- has since been found on Maui, Oahu and Kauai. But in some places, eradication efforts have been surprisingly successful. Or at least they were.

After a ten-year fight, biologists thought they had finally gotten rid of the insect for good on the island of Maui. But now, entomologists and conservation officials are working to beat back the invasion of biting insects once again -- having recently stopped a cargo shipment found crawling with ants, as well as 20 acres of woods teeming with the invader along Maui's northeastern coastline.

While the ants' stinging bite can be painful, its not their threat to human skin that makes them such a nuisance -- it's their inclination to bite anything and everything in their way, obliterating native plant life. Researchers at the University of Hawaii estimate that fire ant populations can destroy as much as $170 million worth of agricultural products.

In reaction to the new ant discoveries, officials have already begun regularly treating invaded parklands on Maui and Hawaii.

With infestations having now been located on all four of the largest Hawaiian Islands, officials are urging homeowners to be more vigilant in watching for and reporting localized invasions.

"The increasing number of homes involved is concerning," Scott Enright, chairperson of the Hawaii Board of Agriculture, told KITV this summer. "We urge residents to take the time to check their homes and yards for this ant and report it as soon as possible."