Parasitic flies turn fire ants into zombies

[jason]

It sounds like something out of science fiction: zombie fire ants. But it’s all too real.
Fire ants wander aimlessly away from the mound.
Eventually their heads fall off, and they die.
The strange part is that researchers at the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M’s AgriLife Extension Service say making "zombies" out of fire ants is a good thing.
"It’s a tool — they’re not going to completely wipe out the fire ant, but it’s a way to control their population," said Scott Ludwig, an integrated pest management specialist with the AgriLife Extension Service in Overton, in East Texas.
The tool is the tiny phorid fly, native to a region of South America where the fire ants in Texas originated. Researchers have learned that there are as many as 23 phorid species along with pathogens that attack fire ants to keep their population and movements under control.
So far, four phorid species have been introduced in Texas.


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[BG_TRBL]

This is interesting, I am just curious of one thing though, normally, when one "predator" is introduced to control another species, then there eventually comes a time when there is a problem with that "predator".
Kinda spooks me about the whole parasitic fly.
Anyone else??

 

[rescue48]

If you've ever lived in the South, you would probably rather take that chance. I know I would. After living 8 years on the Miss. gulf coast and 4 years in Texas, I can say that fire ants are an awful menace. It's no fun getting attacked when mowing your yard.

 

[jason]

If you've ever lived in the South, you would probably rather take that chance. I know I would. After living 8 years on the Miss. gulf coast and 4 years in Texas, I can say that fire ants are an awful menace. It's no fun getting attacked when mowing your yard.

I've been pretty lucky. But I learned from my dad to treat the yard twice a year. So far I've managed to keep them away.