Hi Antlisters:
I am forwarding info that Pat Conant sent to us re:Wasmannia.
Bernarr
>Date: Mon, 27 Dec 1999 15:14:30 -1000
>To: bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
>From: Big Island Miconia Team <miconia@aloha.net>
>Subject: More evidence of movement of LFA in potted plants
>
>
>Bernarr,
>
>There is an attached memo to Larry you can post on the ant
list if you
>like. It's not really big news but it supports the contention
that the ant
>has probably been moved around quite a bit over the years.
>
>Pat C.
>
>
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\kuwahara.wpd"
Decmber 27, 1999
To: Larry Nakahara
From: Pat Conant
Subject: More evidence of movement of little fire ant in potted
plants
Today I was able to find at home a homeowner near the end of
Kaieie Rd. that had been difficult to reach. A neighbor had previously
told me the homeowner had also received palm plants from the commercial
nursery/orchard down the road that is infested with LFA.
The homeowner gave me permission to put peanut butter baits at
the bases of the planted and potted palms on the property. Her
young daughter helped me, but I later discovered she didn't have
the same concept I had of what a palm was, so only about _ of
the plants were baited. Nonetheless, two of the planted palms
were found to be infested and about six of the potted plants were
infested. I gave them a copy of the amdro label to read so we
could discuss treatment options the next time we talked. I noticed
the adjacent property (in a low spot and closer to the heavily
infested orchard) also has many planted palms! I will try to inquire
if they came from the same nursery.
Hello Anters,
It appears we have ample opportunity to present at the HES
Meeting this year
(see below). I would like to give Peter Follet an approximate
amount of time we
would like the session to run. So if you would, please send me
your ideas for
presentations ASAP.
- Assume a 20min presentation.
- We can string together related topics,
- but please select short, manageable , discrete topics.
I would like to finish the session with a round table discussion.
Some suggestions are as follows:
Historical background of ants in Hawaii.
Particular research efforts.
Wasmannia in Hawaii overview.
Wasmannia sampling and control efforts.
HDOA Action Plan.
Outreach efforts (Dan Gruner?).
Working with other states to limit transport of ants.
Ants in the urban setting.
Economic impact of ants.
Please send this along to others who may have an interest in presenting.
Please send your ideas ASAP even if just tentative.
Pete
Subject: Re: HES Meeting - Ants
Author: "Peter Follett" <follett@aloha.net> at
NBS-Internet-Gateway
Date: 12/27/1999 11:11 AM
Hi Pete;
A session on ants could be as long or short as you like. Typically
symposia
are 3-4 h long, with talks running 20-30 min. So, a 4 h session
might have
8-12 speakers. Schedule a 10-15 min. coffee break midway if you
want, but its
not necessary. If you have a lot of speakers you can make the
talks shorter
or, if longer talks are necessary, the symposium could run into
the
afternoon. We are flexible. If you have a program from last year
take a look
at that.
Give me an idea how many ant speakers you expect when you can.
Cheers,
Peter
----- Original Message -----
From: Pete Oboyski <Pete_Oboyski@usgs.gov>
Cc: Peter A. Follett <follett@aloha.net>
Sent: Monday, December 27, 1999 6:36 AM
Subject: HES Meeting - Ants
> Hi Peter,
>
> Gordon Nishida tells me you are interested in having a session
on
ants
> this year at the HES meeting. I suppose I volunteered to
organize
> this session. I am willing to be moderator and put together
the
> schedule of speakers for this session.
>
> What time period do we have available for the session?
> What time length are the other talks?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Pete
Sounds good! Like i said previously, i dont know if i'll be
able to attend.
However, if needed I could certainly help Pete with preliminary
work. -ellen
Hi Bob:
I belong to the Hawaii Ant Group (HAG). This group is concerned
about
various aspects of Hawaiian ants and potential invaders. One of
the members
suggested a list on the ant webpage with all the recent PQ intercepted
ants. On a broader scale I suggested a more comprehensive list,
with all
animals, noxious weeds, and possibly microbes intercepted. Of
course this
includes much more than what may be of interest to ant members,
but still
some in the group expressed interest. I am sure that many of the
alien
species group would find such a list useful also. For my kind
of job, I
would find a list of intercepted insects very useful.
Neil Reimer, who also is in the HAG group, said that he could
provide a
list of intercepted insects from the State PQ side. He has all
his IDs on
data base so putting it on a web page should be no problem. He
talked it
over with Myron Isherwood and they decided that it would be okay
to put it
on the HDOA's webpage, probably under Plant Quarantine. According
to my
understanding, the other specialists for plants, microbes, etc.
do not have
the information computerized on data base, so it may require extra
time and
effort to get it on a web page, something I'm not sure if they're
willing
to spend time on. As an alternate, perhaps the PQ's monthly highlight
for
the portion regarding the important interceptions can be scanned.
This
shouldn't require much effort.
Now comes for your part- the federal PQ interceptions.
Do you have your insect IDs computerized on data base? Can it
be put on a
webpage? Is there a local USDA webpage that you can post it on?
If you do
not have one, perhaps you may be able to post it with Neil's on
the HDOA
website. Do you need administrative approval to share your list
with
others? Do you folks have monthly reports covering interceptions
wihich can
be scanned?
Right now I'm trying to feel out what can and what can't be
done. If a
formal request is required to obtain the data, please let me know
and I'll
try to work it out with our group. I think that sharing data can
be of
benefit to your agency because it shows which organisms were prevented
from
becoming established in Hawaii. All too often PQ is blamed for
the ones
that they "missed".
Hope I'm not creating too much extra work for you. Thanks for
your kokua
and let me know.
Bernarr
Bernarr,
Thank you for your corrections.
Does anyone else have additions/corrections?
Sorry I didn't resend the email with the minutes to everyone,
I didn't
realize it didn't get through to everyone. Is there anyone unable
to
access the archives on the website?
Pete
I think having a session or at least a few ant talks at the
conservation
conference is a great idea. I dont know what the plans are for
the 2000
conference - probably nothing too definate yet. If enough of us
want/are willing
to give talks, we can contact Nancy about having an ant session.
Should i put
discussion of this possibility on the Jan. meeting agenda? -ellen
Pete:
I think an ant session would be a great idea. HES has 3 sessions
planned
now and the conference is in mid- February so we are probably
already out
of time to organize this, but I've raised the question with the
present
President, Peter Follett. I'm next year's president for HES so
I'd be happy
to champion the session for the next HES conference. However,
considering
the impact of ants on our community and the potentially broader
exposure,
what about an ant session or at least an ant talk or two at the
next
Conservation Conference? Does anyone know the Conservation Conference's
plans?
--Gordon
when is the ent meeting? sounds like a good idea to me. However-dont
know if
i'll be attending. -ellen
Is there any interest in having a session on ants at the Hawaii
Ent
Soc meeting this year? I don't know if the organizers have already
laid out the sessions, but I think it would be worth pursuing
while we
have momentum on our side.
I can think of several topics for presentations:
History of ants in Hawaii
Economic impacts
Urban issues
Ecological impacts
Current research efforts
Wasmannia in Hawaii
Any thoughts on this?
Pete
Hello,
This message is mostly to the DOA members of the list, but
I don't have all
of their individual email addresses. Of course I would still like
to hear
from anyone else on the list with relevant information.
I've recently been asked to speak about economic impacts of
biological
invasions at two conferences on invasive species. I am considering
developing the Wasmannia introduction in Hawai'i for presentation
as a case
study. Would the DOA be able to provide data on this topic if
I came up
with a list of desirable information? I'm thinking in terms of
person-hours spent testing properties and potted plants, applying
AMDRO,
monitoring, dealing with the public, developing an action plan,
etc. What
are the opportunity costs of this invasion? i.e., what would you
have more
time to deal with if you weren't doing this? I remember that several
other
pests were mentioned at the meeting. Or are there other invasions
you are
dealing with that would make better case studies? I would like
to compare
the costs of the control efforts to what is economically at stake.
Unfortunately, I am under severe time constraints. I will appreciate
hearing thoughts on this as soon as possible. If a phone call
would be
most convenient, please let me know. (I am not in Hawai'i right
now,
however, so let me know the best time and who I should call).
Mahalo,
Lori
Pete:
Here are my corrections/comments:
Under Wasmannia update:
"Vector control" should be "Vector Control Branch,
Hawaii Dept. of Health"
"Quaranteen" should be "Quarantine"
Another concern is applying chemical control to organic farms.
Under Discussion:
"There were many responses to the......". Replace
with" There were about 100
statewide responses to the press release. Most of the calls were
about the
fire
ant, Solenopsis geminata and there were otheres regarding small
ants. Only
one
response was positive for Wasmannnia. This was a new, fourth location
of
Wasmannia in HPP."
Preliminary HDOA Wasmannia Action Plan.
Under Soleopsis Update
Discussion:
HDOA does not have authority to inspect non-agricultural products.
Add after
this, "but has the authority to inspect boxes, and any other
container in
which such articles have been transported or any packing material
used in
connection therewith ."
Pete, keep up the good work!
Bernarr
Gordon and Antlisters:
Attached is the HDOA's Little Fire Ant Action Plan in Wordperfect format.
Bernarr
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\Fantpla21.wpd"
Hi Neil:
According to some recent postings, there seems to be much interest
in
setting up a site for a Quarantine Interception List. I am also
very
interested. What would be the best way to proceed on this?
A while ago , you showed me your computerized data base for
quarantine
interceptions. Would you be willing to share the info on the web
or would
this be a political decision ie. approval from Myron, Lyle, Chairman,
etc?
If agreed, is your format scannable, or is it compatible to what
the server
can accept? Where would be the best place for the site- Hawaii
Biological
Survey Data Base or HDOA's web page? Which side would be more
convenient
in terms of inputting data? I suppose inputting monthly would
be nice.
If this is going to be too much work, what is the possibility
of scanning
the significant interceptions section of the Plant Quarantine
Monthly
HIghlights? I think that to keep something like this going, we
need to
make it simple and convenient as possible. Do other specialist
in your
group (plants, animals, aquatics, microbes) have data bases set
up like
yours? Would they share their information? I would like to keep
things
simple in setting things up, but if need be, would a request from
our
group be required or helpful?
I am quite naive (ignorant) when it comes to logistics for setting
up a
site, and if looks like a "go", it would be good to
consult with Gordon.
If things are working out well, we can then discuss how to include
the
quarantine interceptions from the federal side.
(These are my thoughts just to get things started. I f anyone
else cares to
contribute, please do).
Mahalo,
Bernarr
Sorry, but I was the culprit of the postings of ant sounds,
Formis, etc.
In the first posting, I mentioned that they were forwarded messages
from
Entomo-L, the entomology discussion group to which I subscibe.
Next time,
I'll try to make it more clear that they are forwarded messages.
Too much
rush causes too much confusion. As usual, if they do not interest
you,
please direct your pointer to the trash.
Bernarr
Hi all - i didnt get the Nov. meeting minutes either. but i
just read them on
the archives - THANKS PETE!! Very much appreciated! The minutes
look very
thorough to me, i.e.no additions/comments from this end
Gordon: it is also possible I have missed a number of messages
as well--I
did not get the minutes of the meeting, and I have also been confused
by
some of the threads of communication that to me, appeared out
of nowhere
(e.g. ant sounds).
Thanks for looking into it,
Dan
Gordon:
I was just looking in the Archives of the Ant Page and noticed
that I had
missed some of the postings, on my everyday e-mail. Is it your
policy to
post everything that comes to you directly to the Archives? I
would prefer
if you could first post it on the Ant List, before archiving it,
so I would
not miss out on what is current. I do not look at the ant page
that
regularly.
There may have been others who missed Peter Oboyski's notes
for the HAG
meeting of Nov. 10. If so, could you post it again?
Thanks,
Bernarr
>Date: Wed, 8 Dec 1999 09:57:51 -1000
>Sender: Entomology Discussion List <ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA>
>From: "Sanford D. Porter" <sdp@NERSP.NERDC.UFL.EDU>
>Subject: FORMIS-99 Ant Bibliography Update
>To: ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
>
>I have completed the 1999 update of "FORMIS: A Master
Bibliography of Ant
>Literature". FORMIS.99 has approximately 7,000 new citations
for a total
>of almost 29,000 citations. Almost 5,000 new citations come
from "A
>Bibliography of Ant Systematics" by Ward, Bolton, Shattuck,
and Brown.
>Daniel Wojcik contributed several hundred new citations and
keyworded
>numerous others. Many other colleagues have also contributed
citations.
>Thanks to all.
>
>FORMIS.99 can be downloaded from the Web at:
>
> http://cmave.usda.ufl.edu/~formis/
>
>The web-searchable versions of FORMIS are still the 1997 version.
I will
>try to update those in the next several months.
>
>Please contact me if you have problems or questions.
>
>Sanford
>
>Sanford D. Porter, PhD
>Research Entomologist
>
>-----------------------------------------------------------
>USDA-ARS, CMAVE USDA-ARS, CMAVE
>P.O. Box 14565 1600 S.W. 23rd Drive
>Gainesville, FL 32604 USA Gainesville, FL 32608 USA
>
>Office: 352 374-5914
>Secretary: 374-5903
>FAX: 374-5818
>Internet: SDP@NERSP.NERDC.UFL.EDU
>-----------------------------------------------------------
>X-Sender: swerle@emily.oit.umass.edu
>X-Authentication-warning: emily.oit.umass.edu: swerle owned
process doing -bs
>Date: Wed, 8 Dec 1999 06:44:21 -1000
>Reply-To: Entomology Discussion List <ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA>
>Sender: Entomology Discussion List <ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA>
>From: Sean F Werle <swerle@ENT.UMASS.EDU>
>Subject: Re: Ants' sounds
>To: ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
>
>These might be interesting also (gotten from FORMIS97, a great
sourse of
>ant lit)
>
>DeVries, P.J. 1989. Detecting and recording the calls produced
by
>butterfly caterpillars and ants. J Res Lepid
> 28:258-262. Comments
> DeVries, P.J. 1990. Enhancement of symbioses between butterfly
>caterpillars and ants by vibrational communication.
> Science 248:1104-1106. Abstract, Comments
> DeVries, P.J. 1992. Singing caterpillars, ants and symbiosis.
Sci Am
>267:76-82. Comm
>Eskov, Ye.K. 1973. Acoustic signals of Formicinae ants. [In
Russian with
>English summary]. Zool. Zh. 52:709-713.
> Comments
> Esperson, J.R. 1994. Do ants use ultrasound for personal
communication
>(Hymenoptera: Formicidae). J. Aust. Entomol.
> Soc. 33:213-215. Comments
> Forbes, H.O.; Peal, S.E. 1881. Sound-producing ants. Nature
>24:101-102. Comments
> Forest, H.F. 1963. Three problems in invertebrate behavior.
III. The
>production of audible sound by common ants and
> its possible uses in communication, with special reference
to s. Ph.D.
>Thesis, Rutgers Univ. pp. 221-350, p. Comments
> Forrest, H.F. 1963. The production of audible sound by common
ants and
>its possible uses in communication, with
> species reference to stridulation. H. F. Forrest, Three problems
in
>invertebrate behavior, pp. 221-350. Ph.D. diss.,
> Rutgers University. Comments
> Gonalves, C.R. 1940. Observaes sobre Pseudococcus comstocki
(Kuw.,
>1902) atacando Citrus na baixada
> fluminense. Rodriguesia 13:179-198, fig. 1-39. Abstract,
Comments
> Graham, S.A. 1918. The carpenter ant as a destroyer of sound
wood.
>Minn. State Entomol. 17th Rep.; pp. 32-40.
> Comments
> Hlldobler, B.; Braun, U.; Gronenberg, W.; Kirchner, W.H.;
Peeters, C.
>1994. Trail communication in the ant
> Megaponera foetens (Fabr.) (Formicidae, Ponerinae). J insect
physiol
>40:585-593. Abstract, Comments
> Lewis, D.M. 1882. Sound-producing ants. Nature 25:266. Comments
> Markl, H.; Hlldobler, B.; Hlldobler, T. 1977. Mating behavior
and
>sound production in harvester ants
> (Pogonomyrmex, Formicidae). Insectes Soc. 24:191-212. Comments
> Masters, W.M.; Tautz, J.T.; Fletcher, N.H.; Markl, H. 1983.
Body
>vibration and sound production in an insect (Atta
> sexdens) without specialized radiating structures. J. Comp.
Physiol. A
>Sens Neural Behav Physiol B Biochem Syst
> Environ Physiol 150:239 - 249. Abstract, Comments
> Plekhanov, G.F.; Kaul, R.M. 1975. Conditional reflex to color
and
>sound signals in the ant Formica rufa. [In Russian].
> In: Ants and Forest Protection. Proc. 5th All-Union Symp.,
Moscow,
>1975, pp. 156-160. Comments
> Samways, M.J. 1982. Ecologically-sound and commercially-acceptable
>control of ants in guava trees. Subtropica
> 3:19-20. Comments
> Santschi, F. 1909. Sur un moyen trs simple d'entendre les
sons de trs
>petits insectes. Bull. Soc. Ent. France A.
> 1909:310. Abstract, Comments
> Schilliger, E.; Baroni Urbani, C. 1985. Morphologie de l'organe
de
>stridulation et sonogrammes compars chez les
> ouvrires de deux espces de fourmis moissonneuses du genre
Messor
>(Hymenoptera, Formic. Bull. Soc. Vaud. Sc. Nat.
> 77:377 - 384, 2 pl. Abstract, Comments
> Showler, A.T.; Reagan, T.E. 1991. Effects of sugarcane borer,
weed,
>and nematode control strategies in Louisiana
> sugarcane. Environ. Entomol. 20:358-370. Abstract, Comments
> Stuart, R.J.; Alloway, T.M. 1980. Stridulation by workers
of the ant,
>Leptothorax muscorum (Nylander) (Hymenoptera:
> Formicidae). Psyche 87:199-210. Abstract, Comments
> Tautz, J.; Roces, F.; Hlldobler, B. 1995. Use of a sound-based
>vibratome by leaf-cutting ants. Science 267:84-87.
> Abstract, Comments
> Wagner, D. 1995. Pupation site choice of a North American
hycaenid
>butterfly: the benefits of entering ant nests. Ecol
> entomol 20:384-392. Abstract, Comments
> Zhantiev, R.D.; Sulkhanov, A.V. 1977. Sounds of ants of the
genus
>Myrmica. Zool. Zh. 56:1255-1258. Comments
>
>
>
>Sean F. Werle <swerle@ent.umass.edu>
>Graduate student
>Organismic and Evolutionary Biology
>UMass, Amherst
>Work: (413)-545-0524
>http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~swerle/
>http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river
>
For all of those interested, and do not subscribe to Entomo-L,
I have
forwarded the following:
Bernarr
>Date: Wed, 8 Dec 1999 05:35:18 -1000
>Sender: Entomology Discussion List <ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA>
>From: Michael Schmitt <m.schmitt@UNI-BONN.DE>
>Subject: Re: Ants' sounds
>To: ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
>
>At 12:13 08.12.1999 +0100, Nathalie Lautier wrote:
>
>>
>>Would any body know which species of ants are supposed
to produce sounds,
>>even if they are not audible for us
>>Would there be any references on that subject?
>>
>
>Maybe, or even: probably, there are more recent and more extensive
papers
>on that subject. Anyway, I list some general references:
>
>Bailey, Winston J.: Acoustic Behaviour of Insects - An Evolutionary
>Perspective. IX+225 pp., Chapman & Hall, London etc. (1991)
>
>Busnel, Ren=E9-Guy (ed.) Acoustic Behaviour of Animals. XX+933
pp.,=
Elsevier
>Publ., Amsterdam etc. (1963), especially the chapters by Bernard
Dumortier
>(11: Morphology and Sound Emission Apparatus in Arthropoda,
12: The
>Physical Characteristics of Sound Emissions in Arthropoda,
and 21:
>Ethological and Physiological Study of Sound Emission in Arthropoda).
>
>Frings, Mabel & Frings, Hubert: Sound Production and Sound
Recep=FCtion by
>Insects - A Bibliography. IV+108 pp., Pennsylvania State University
Press,
>University Park, Pa. (1960)
>
>Haskell, P.T.: Insect Sounds. VIII+189 pp., H.F. Witherby,
London (1961)
>
>Markl, Hubert: Die Verstaendigung durch Stridulationssignale
bei
>Blattschneiderameisen. I. Die biologische Bedeutung der Stridulation.
>Z.vergl.Physiol. 57, 299-330 (1967), II. Erzeugung und Eigenschaften
der
>Signale. l.c. 60, 103-150 (1968), III. Die Empfindlichkeit
fuer
>Substratvibrationen. l.c. 69, 6-37 (1970)
>
>Maybe this serves for a first approach.
>
> Greetings
> Michael Schmitt
>
>* Dr. Michael Schmitt (Zoologischer Anzeiger, Managing Editor)
*
>* Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut und Museum Alexander Koenig
*
>* Adenauerallee 160, D-53113 Bonn, Germany *
>* Phone/Fax +49 228-9122 286, e-mail: m.schmitt@uni-bonn.de
*
>* http://www.uni-bonn.de/museumkoenig/ENGLISH/ESCHMITT.HTML
*
Gordon mentioned that the List of Ants was set up the way it
was to serve
as an index. That is fine , and perhaps the way that it should
be. What I
had in mind was to retype the names into separate lists, such
as
established in Hawaii, quarantine interceptions, etc. to make
it more user
friendly.
Regarding Ellen's comment, to take it one step further, what
might be nice
is a list of all creatures, not just ants, that are intercepted
by the
quarantine people. This includes both the state and federal PQ.
Neil has a
running account of the insect (and related) interceptions and
identifications from the state PQ side. I'm not sure of the politics
involved in getting a list like this on the web. I'm sure if there
is
enough interest, we can talk to Neil about this. Perhaps other
groups, ie.
CGAPS, MISC, BIISC, HEAR, may be interested in this kind of info
also. I'm
sure that this will create extra work, but on the PQ's benefit
side,
perhaps the alien species groups can help push for more funds
for PQ to help keep out these alien species, using the specific
data.
I think that PQ should get some well deserved credit for the interceptions
that were made, instead of often getting blamed for the ones that
were
"missed "(got established). Also what would be nice
are the interceptions
of prohibited animals, plant diseases, noxious weeds, etc. State
PQ
usually lists the significant interceptions in their monthly highlights,
and perhaps just this may suffice, without additional burden.
Anyway, you
should make your wishes known. I'm not familiar with the operations
on the
Federal PQ side, but perhaps something similar can be started
if there is
enough interest.
>From my side , I have compiled the records of newly established
aliens
(insects, mites, other related arthropods, and gastropods) for
the years
1991 to 1998. I, and others, have also gathered the records for
the year
1999. These will be published in the next issue of Hawaii Biological
Survey
Records (Bishop Museum Occasional Papers Series). If there is
enough
interest, perhaps I can put it on the web, after publication.
Sorry about the previous garbled message. Error on my part.
Bernarr
Gordon - re individual species pages: fyi there is a brief
write up on the
argentine ant (by Paul Krushelnycky) on the HEAR webpage, under
HNIS reports
(Harmful Non-Indigenous Species in Hawaii). There may also be
one there for
Solenopsis invicta, but i'm not sure. I'll send you the exact
web location.
-ellen
Bernarr/Gordon - i think a seperate list of quarantine interceptions
would be
GREAT, if its possible. I think that kind of information would
make it pretty
clear to peopel just how important the quarantines/inspections
are, and what
we're up against. -ellen
Bernarr Kumashiro wrote:
> Gordon:
>
> Thank you for making us aware of the List of Ants on the
webpage. I'd like
> to add my 2 cents, if you hadn't thought about it already.
I'd like to
> see a separate list for the ants already established in Hawaii.
All are
> adventive so you need not mention it each time except for
at the
> introduction of the list. A separate list could be made for
the
> quarantine interceptions as well as one for synonymns ie.
name of ant with
> junior synonyms below it. Also, an alphabetized common names
list would be
> useful. It would be nice, if Neil Reimer could share his
list of ants
> that bite/sting. Here I go making more work for you again.
>
> We're still working on the final draft for the HDOA's Action
Plan for the
> little fire ant.
>
> Bernarr
>
> *****************************************************
> Bernarr Kumashiro
> Insect Systematist
> Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture
> 1428 S. King St.
> Honolulu, Hawaii 96814
> Phone: (808) 973-9534
> e-mail: bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
> ****************************************************
--
Ellen VanGelder
BRD - Haleakala National Park
P.O. Box 369
Makawao, HI 96768
ph: 808-572-4472
email: evangeld@hawaii.edu
AmeriScan: November 30, 1999
SOLAR TRAP KILLS FIRE ANTS WITHOUT POISONS
PLANO, Texas, November 30, 1999 (ENS) - A new electronic device
claims to
control invasive red fire ants without using any environmental
toxins. The Solar
Ant Charmer, invented by Heitman Laboratories, is a solar powered
device that
"quickly collects thousands of fire ants" with each
use. A small solar panel and
electronics create an electric signal the company says fire ants
"cannot resist."
It captures the fire ants responsible for defense and food gathering
capabilities of
the colony. The ants are then killed by pouring soapy water into
the collector. No
poisons or chemicals are needed, and fire ant activity is almost
eliminated.
Red fire ants, native to South America, arrived in the U.S.
from about 60 years
ago through the port of Mobile, Alabama. Since then, they have
spread across
the Southeastern U.S. and Puerto Rico, and colonies have been
found in
Arizona, California, New Mexico and Virginia. In all, fire ants
have colonized
more than 310 million acres in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Fire
ant attacks, both
indoors and outdoors, have killed several people. Heitman Laboratories
says the
Solar Ant Charmer is easy to use, safe, effective and "earth
friendly." It can be
used around gardens or any other areas where poisons can not be
used, and it
is supposed to last for years. The product retails for $89.95
and is available on
the Internet and through direct mail catalogs. ENS has not tested
this product
and does not endorse it. For more information contact Heitman
Laboratories at
1-800-472-5024, or visit their website at www.antcharmer.com.
this site also has other interesting links, incluidng http://fireant.tamu.edu/
-------------------------------------------
ENN Daily News for Monday, November 29, 1999
U.S. imports fire ant enemies
Natural enemies of the fire ant are being imported from South
America to
combat the invasive pests in the United States, report scientists
focused on
eradicating the critters. Fire ants reside on more than 300 million
acres
across 12 states and Puerto Rico. "We believe imported fire
ants have
flourished in the United States because they have no natural enemies
here.
We're trying to change that by working with state cooperators
to introduce
natural enemies," said David Williams, a scientist with the
U.S. Department
of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service.
Full Story:
http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/1999/11/112999/fireant_7652.asp
>Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 12:04:28 -1000
>To: Bernarr Kumashiro <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>From: Big Island Miconia Team <miconia@aloha.net>
>Subject: Update on Disribution of Wasmannnia in Papaikou
>
>
>Bernarr,
>
>Please pass this information on to Larry and Ron.
>
>Clyde and I went to a ginger farmer's house (at Papaikou).
We wanted to
>put peanut butter baits out on the ginger farmer's place since
he is near the
>palm nursery infestation at (at Papaikou). (The farmer )said
he was given
>some potted palms by (delete) about a month ago. We put peanut
butter
>chopsticks onto and around the pots (about 20 in a mixed species
assortment)
>and came back about 1.5 hrs. later. Two large potted Pritchardia
did have
>Wasmannia in them. We had baited very thoroughly in the pots
and on the
>ground but only the two pots had the ant. I have permission
to return
>tomorrow to treat with amdro if the weather is good. It appears
they have
>not spread from the pots yet. However, this proves the ants
can be moved
>accidentally in potted plants.
>
>Afterward, we talked to (delete) who said they had
>given some potted plants also to the a family next to the
(above mentioned)
>These people were not home so I will contact them later. It
appears those
>palms are now planted near their driveway. (He)also mentioned
that they
>have had several plant sales in the last six years so infested
palms may
>have been sold from their nursery. This means there are at
least three
>seperate infested nurseries on the island that may have sold
infested
>plants over the last several years.
>
>Pat Conant
>
>Date: Thu, 18 Nov 1999 07:55:22 -1000
>To: Bernarr Kumashiro <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>From: Big Island Miconia Team <miconia@aloha.net>
>Subject: Disribution of Wasmannnia in Papaikou
Hi all:
Two interesting finds by Pat Conant and Clyde Hirayama from
the HDOA Hilo
office. Wasmannia can be found occupying niches in pasture areas
and can be
found hitch-hiking in potted plants. Please read below and the
separate
message.
Bernarr
>Bernarr,
>
>I Don't think this info is exciting enough to forward to the
AWG but I just
>wanted Larry and Ron to be aware of it. Because we worked
so efficiently
>yesterday scoring the infected miconia yesterday, Clyde and
I pressed
>Eloise and Lionel (HDOA-Plant Pathology) into service to help
us do a
>chopstick survey of the
>pasture above (deleted) farm in Papaikou. we walked four seperate
>"transects" into the pasture roughly makai to mauka
and perpendicular to
>the fence separating the (deleted) eucalyptus/fishtail palm
windbreak from
>the mauka pasture. Clyde covered the east corner towards the
macnuts on
>the makai side and I took the west end, proceeding paralell
and beyond the
>windbreak. Eloise and Lionel walked perpendicular to the windbreak
heading
>upslope.
> When we returned to pick up the peanut butter baits, I found
the ants
>extended about 50m beyond the north end of the windbreak along
the pasture
>boundary. Baits beyond that point were negative. On my bait
line that
>turned upslope and perpendicular to the windbreak, the ants
extended into
>the pasture roughly 150m. Lionel and Eloise got about the
same results;
>the ants extend about 150m upslope into the pasture. Clyde's
corner near
>the macnuts was quite swampy, but they were pesent about 20m
into the
>pasture along a drainage. He found that they did not occur
along the SE
>fence along the macnut road.
> I suppose this all sounds confusing so I have tried to plot
this on a topo
>map. The map is kind of old and there are few land marks in
the area so I
>hope I am plotting the right place. I should have borrowed
a GPS from the
>miconia guys. I can go back and do that since we flagged the
farthest out
>positive-find baits.
> These results show the ants can colonize pasture areas. It
is difficult
>to see chopsticks in tall grass so we dropped them in the
shorter patches,
>including clover, or bare dirt. We don't know how they are
distributed
>with respect to grass cover.
> According to the Amdro Pro label, it can only be used in
cattle pastures
>in states listed on the label and Hawaii is not on it.
Hi, folks:
I finally found some time and got the web pages a bit further
along. Thanks
to Larry Nakahara we now have a PDF file of the original press
release up
and also a couple of images for Wasmannia.Thanks to Pat Conant
we have the
last known Big Island distribution map also available.
Pete Oboyski put together a great synopsis of his ant project
and that's up
and available. For those of you who have ant projects, please
send me a
short synopsis of your project to make available so others will
know what
you are doing.
Neil Reimer has kindly agreed to review the checklist. This
version still
has some anomalies in it (species not really established, a few
name
changes, etc.).
Also started some antlinks. Be careful with them, they haven't
been
verified yet, I'll do that as soon as possible.
The literature information is ready, but I'm learning different
ways of
presenting data on the web at the moment and as soon as that's
figured out,
it will go up.
Any other suggestions, corrections, changes? If you have any
ant images you
can share, I'd appreciate receiving them so we can link the image
to the
checklist names (with identification please!). In particular,
I'm looking
for an image that can serve as the centerpiece (or background)
for the main
webpage.
The address for the webpage is:
http://www.bishopmuseum.org/bishop/HBS/ants/
Aloha,
Gordon
Hi all,
Please review the attached minutes from the Nov 10 meeting,
and send
any additions, corrections, etc. to me. I like to think these
minutes
are worthwhile. Your comments on them are especially valuable
to me
because the information has gone through my mental filter and
may not
reflect the true meaning of what was said. My ability to focus
was
waning towards the end of the meeting, please note any additions
here
especially.
Pete
P.S. Let me know if you need a different format other than Word 97.
Hawaii Ant Group meeting - 10 November 1999
In attendance:
Gordon Nishida (Bishop Museum)
Frank Howarth (Bishop Museum)
Mike Richardson (USFWS)
David Foote (USGS-BRD)
Pete Oboyski (USGS-BRD/UH)
Bernarr Kumashiro (HDOA)
Larry Nakahara (HDOA)
Pat Conant (HDOA)
Neil Reimer (HDOA)
Ellen VanGelder (USGS-BRD/UH)
Lori Lach (Cornell Univ)
Lloyd Loope (USGS-BRD)
Dan Gruner (Univ Hawaii)
Myron Isherwood (HDOA)
Lyle Wong (HDOA)
Meeting began 9:15.
Oboyski asked for any corrections, additions to minutes from 21
September 1999 meeting.
No corrections/additions were offered.
VanGelder provided an agenda (Appendix 1).
Wasmannia update:
Conant provided an update on Wasmannia including a distribution
map
(produced on ArcView by Kim Tavares). All (8) infestation sites
(1
Kapoho, 4 Hawaii Paradise Park, 1 Panaewa, 1 Papaikou, 1 Kauai)
have
been treated twice with Amdro, except Papaikou was treated with
Extinguish because the infestation occurs in a food orchard. Conant
and one assistant still trying to delimit the boundaries of some
of
the infestations. Vector control has assisted in poison baiting.
Conant believes Panaewa population can be eradicated, others still
need boundries delineated. Attempts to eradicate Kauai site continue.
Plant Quaranteen inspectors bait with "peanut butter sticks"
all
outgoing (off-island) plants to prevent spread. Conant notes that
one
greenhouse/nursery sells both wholesale and retail - a potential
source of transporting ants to new locations, he is trying to
obtain
sales receipts in order to follow up on potential incipient
populations. One problem he faces is contacting absentee landowners.
Another concern is applying control to organic farms.
Discussion:
(Nakahara) Because Wasmannia has been here for up to 10 years
there
may be many unknown locations awaiting discovery.
(Reimer/Nakahara/Conant/Kumashiro) There were many responses to
the
press release - all but one were Solenopsis geminata. One report
was
a new, forth location of Wasmannia in HPP. (Nakahara) Take caution
in
dealing with ant sources, so as not to scare people and inhibit
cooperation. Where to look for unknown populations - Landscaped
areas
(imported plants) and wetter, rather than drier, areas. Nakahara
also
reviewed (and passed around a copy) of HDOA Wasmannia Action Plan
(see
HAG web page).
(Lach) Is there seasonality to bait attractiveness. Baiting for
Linepithema suggests different dietary needs during particular
periods
of colony development. This could result in non-detection of
Wasmannia when they are actually present. No answers were available.
(Oboyski) Are there any nontarget impacts known for ant poison
baiting? (Nakahara) Bait distribution and size too scattered and
small for vertebrates, invertebrates unknown. (Loope) For worker
protection and PR reasons there should readily available answers
to
this question. He also noted Chlorpyrofos has been getting bad
press.
(VanGelder) Is it possible that poison baiting could have
counter-intuitive effects (i.e. could Wasmannia or other species
show
a post treatment increase in population)? No answers were available.
All agreed this should be considered.
(Wong) An "aggressive" approach (e.g. aerial broadcast
of large areas)
should be taken to control Wasmannia ASAP - so as to reduce spread
while the areas are still manageable. He suggested the following
steps be taken:
1. Contact American Cyanamid about product registrations for our
needs.
2. Outline needs/documentation of current control measures.
3. Outline needs/documentation for wider application of control
measures.
4. Discuss research opportunities.
5. Outline steps/needs for registration/application of control
products.
(Oboyski) Can DOI Office of Insular Affairs provide any resources?
(Loope) will investigate.
Kaneshiro Grant:
Dan Gruner has been awarded funding through an NSF Grant obtained
by
Ken Kaneshiro to bridge the gap between science and society. Loope
contacted Kaneshiro (after last meeting) about having a grad student
interface with schools to collect distribution information of
ants and
provide education to the public. Gruner's project is in planning
stages, the following are tentative suggestions. Educate students
on
ants and organize students to bait for ants around their homes.
(VanGelder and others) Produce a pamphlet with pictures and text
to
aid in ant ID for lay-persons. (Nakahara/Kumashiro) Concerns on
what
to do with this information, including:
1. Will HDOA be flooded with calls? - Probably initially then
tapering
off.
2. How will people be contacted with survey results? - No immediate
plans to do this.
3. Will follow-up investigations be unmanageable? - Probably,
but more
information on Wasmannia is better than less. Gruner will act
as the
first level contact.
Solenopsis update:
(VanGelder) Sent out a copy of RIFA management/action plan. No
comments about plan.
(Reimer) Plant Quaranteen inspecting all potted plants and bailed
hay
and straw from known RIFA sources. Items must be treated at place
of
origin, otherwise they will be held in quarantine for 5 days.
This is
an interim rule for 6 months that will become permanent in some
form
(5 day quarantine may become hold until fully inspected).
Discussion:
Are certain areas in Hawaii at greater risk of infestation than
others? A California risk map showed most of California to be
at
risk. Hawaii is such a mosaic of habitats that probably most of
Hawaii is at risk. S. invicta shows a broader habitat range than
the
already present S. geminata. (Loope) What about other pathways
of
introduction (i.e. construction materials)? HDOA has no authority
to
inspect non-agricultural products. A shipment of frozen chickens
with
RIFA was reported to have been intercepted on the mainland. Other
pathways of introduction need to be summarized.
(Isherwood) Akaka has prepared 910 initiative, a bill that is
broader
in scope than 321, on the topic of invasive species.
Web page:
All applauded the HAG web page and were excited for its expansion.
Nishida has received few items to be posted (Oboyski Mauna Kea
ant
survey). He called for links to other sites and more projects
to
post.
Tasks:
1. Contact American Cyanamid (Wong).
2. Get project summaries to Nishida for web page (All).
3. Needs list for control program (Conant).
4. Contact Insular Affairs (Loope)
Meeting adjourned: 12:00 noon
Next meeting scheduled for 13 January 2000.
APPENDIX 1: Agenda for 10 Nov 1999 Meeting
Author: evangeld@hawaii.edu at NBS-Internet-Gateway
Date: 11/2/1999 3:39 PM
Priority: Normal
BCC: Pete Oboyski at NBS-PISC
TO: "(Ant Working Group)" <antlist@bishopmuseum.org>
at
NBS-Internet-Gateway
Subject: agenda
------------------------------- Message Contents
-------------------------------
Hawaii Ant Group
Meeting Agenda - 10 Nov.99
1. Wasmannia update and discussion
-distribution
-control
-HDOA action plan
-assisting HDOA efforts: detection (big island, other
islands); others
-information/public awareness
-identification key
2. Red imported fire ant
-action plan/management plan
-areas of the state that would be impacted if the ant
established
-identification key
-ways to assist HDOA prevention efforts
3. Other ant species
-possible paper/document/website on what control-eradication
strategies
have been used or tested on what species in what conditions, and
the
regulatory status of those strategies.
-subgroup on toxicants/control methods, or just do via
ant-list?
4. Web site
-comments for Gordon (i.e. the outline he emailed)
Gordon - thanks so much for doing the webpage! Great job!
Neil, Dan, Lori - when cruising through the antlist archives on
the
webpage, i noticed email correspondence between you folks saying
the
next meeting was on 11 Nov., which is an error (its on 10 Nov.).
You may
already be aware of this error. if so, disregard. if not, note
that
the meeting is tomorrow (nov.10) at 9:00, HDOA plant quarantine
branch. -ellen
FYI
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 7 CFR Part 301
[Docket No. 99-078-1]
Imported Fire Ant; Quarantined Areas and Treatment Dosage
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.
SUMMARY: We are amending the imported fire ant regulations
by
designating as quarantined areas portions of two counties in
California. As a result of this action, the interstate movement
of
regulated articles from those areas will be restricted. This action
is
necessary to prevent the artificial spread of the imported fire
ant to
noninfested areas of the United States. We are also amending the
treatment provisions in the Appendix to the imported fire ant
regulations by lowering the dosage rate of bifenthrin wettable
powder
for the treatment of containerized nursery plants.
DATES: This interim rule is effective November 5, 1999. We
invite you
to comment on this docket. We will consider all comments that
we
receive by January 4, 2000.
ADDRESSES: Please send your comment and three copies to: Docket
No.
99- 078-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite
3C03, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238.
Please state that your comment refers to Docket No. 98-078-1.
You may
read any comments that we receive on this docket in our
reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of the
South
Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue, SW., Washington,
DC.
Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you,
please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related
information, including the names of organizations and individuals
who
have commented on APHIS rules, are available on the Internet at
http:// www.aphis.usda.gov/rad/webrepor.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Ronald P. Milberg, Operations
Officer, Program Support, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 134,
Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-5255.
Dear Dr Nishida
Pat Conant has informed us that you have formed an ant working
group and
web site to deal with the problems casued by introduced ant species.
As you
probably know, we have serious problems with W. auropunctata and
S.
geminata in Galapagos and we are keen to learn about the impact
that these
species have in other island ecosystems, in addition to comparing
control
methodologies. We would be very grateful if you could send us
the details
for subscribing to the list and hope that this will be the start
of a
closer working relationship between these two archipelagos.
Saludos and thanks
Charlotte Causton
Charlotte Causton PhD
Research Entomologist
Charles Darwin Research Station
Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands
Postal address:
Charles Darwin Research Station
A.P. 17-01-3891
Quito
Ecuador
Fax: +593 4 564636
Gordon et al.,
Attached is a summary of my work on Mauna Kea. Since we have
not
published anything from this yet I cannot provide any results.
However, I do outline the background, objectives, and methods
of the
project.
Pete
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\mkants~1.doc"
>From: "Williams, David" <dwilliams@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu>
>To: 'Bernarr Kumashiro' <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>Subject: RE: Wasmannia
>Date: Tue, 2 Nov 1999 06:51:45 -1000
>
>Dear Bernarr,
>
>I think it would be better to make the 2nd application a little
earlier
>based on your wet conditions. Instead of 3-4 months, maybe
1-2.
>
>Regarding some of the insecticides registered for ants in
citrus in
>Florida, there are several. Some of these are Clinch as a
bait and
>Logic as a bait both applied at 1lb per acre. Lorsban 4EC
as a surface
>application at 1 quart per acre and Talstar 0.2g ai at 100lbs
per acre.
>I am sure there are others but this is what I know of. The
person who
>could give you excellent information on controlling ants in
citrus is
>Joe Knapp located at the Citrus Research Station in Lake Alfred
Florida.
>Joe's email address is knapp@gnv.ifas.ufl.edu Joe is currently
in
>Australia but is expected back in the states November 16th.
>
>I hope this helps you out.
>
>Best regards,
>
>Dave
>
>David F. Williams
>USDA-ARS-CMAVE
>P.O. Box 14565
>Gainesville, FL 32604
>Tel. (352) 374-5982
>FAX 352-374-5984
>Email: dwilliams@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu
>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Bernarr Kumashiro [SMTP:bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu]
>>Sent: Thursday, October 28, 1999 7:18 PM
>>To: Williams, David
>>Subject: Wasmannia
>>
>>>Dear Dave:
>>>
>>>Thank you for your reply regarding the application
of Amdro in our attempt
>>>to eradicate Wasmannia on Kauai. You mentioned the
2nd application should
>>>be 3-4 months after the 1st. Considering that Kauai
is much wetter than
>>>the Galapagos, should the 2nd application be made
earlier than 3-4 months
>>>to factor in the breakdown? Also, would you know what
insecticides are
>>>being used to control the ants in citrus tree orchards
and other crops?
>>>
>>>Aloha,
>>>
>>>Bernarr
>>>
Hi all - attached is an outliine of potential ant meeting agenda.
Please comment re: additions, subtractions. -ellen
Ellen VanGelder
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\10nov99agenda.rtf":
Hawaii Ant Group
Meeting Agenda - 10 Nov.99
1. Wasmannia update and discussion
-distribution
-control
-HDOA action plan
-assisting HDOA efforts: detection (big island, other islands);
others
-information/public awareness
-identification key
2. Red imported fire ant
-action plan/management plan
-areas of the state that would be impacted if the ant established
-identification key
-ways to assist HDOA prevention efforts
3. Other ant species
-possible paper/document/website on what control-eradication strategies
have been used or tested on what species in what conditions, and
the regulatory status of those strategies.
-subgroup on toxicants/control methods, or just do via ant-list?
4. Web site
-comments for Gordon (i.e. the outline he emailed)
Hi all:
I received a copy of the following letter which was sent to
the HDOA.
Thought it may be of interest. The ants were confirmed to be
<italic>Wasmannia</italic> by Bernarr.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>Aloha,
>Well, it certainly was nice to hear somebody finally admit
that we have a
>fire ant problem here on the Big Island. I have been trying
for years to
>get some response from various government agencies here but
it has fallen
>on deaf ears. I think I have the ant you are talking about.
You can
>tell from my sample. I laughed when you explained how to get
some of
>them with the peanut butter. I simply wiped the trail of them
off my
>kitchen counter into the bag. I moved to Hawaiian Paradise
Park in 1995.
>I am certain that the ants came with the soil that I had brought
in from
>Papaikou area. I remember seeing them in the soil but not
really
>thinking much of it. They are so tiny. Then I remember getting
bitten
>one day standing out in the dirt. It has become a nightmare.
They have
>just gotten worse and worse. They have chased away all other
ants and
>most bugs in my house. For the longest time I was getting
bitten in bed
>and did not know what it was. No one had an answer. Then I
finally
>noticed the little moving specks. They move so slowly and
if they are
>single one cannot see or notice, them. Now they are on every
plant in my
>yard, every flower, and crawling on everything. I cannot even
go outside
>to pick a flower. When I work in the yard I must wear long
sleeve shirt
>and pants and wear bug spray on all other exposed parts. I
have to
>constantly monitor inside my house to find if they are qetting
in and so
>must spray Raid somewhere in my house weekly where they are
coming in. I
>am telling you it is truly my worst nightmare. The other night
I was out
>planting a tree and I had on shorts and a tank top. I knew
there would
>not be ants where I was going. At dusk I decided to take out
some vines
>and a banana tree. I didn't notice the ants at first because
you cannot
>feel them crawling on you or feel them bite, only the sting
that comes
>later. So I felt one and I thought no big deal. Then I realized
that I
>had them all over me and I began to feel it all. I went into
the house
>and showered but it was too late. I must have had 50 bites
on my legs,
>arms, face and neck. I literally thought that I was going
to go crazy.
>I wanted to get out of my skin. I paced for half an hour slapping
and
>scratching my skin. For me the pain and itching is very intense
for the
>first half hour after being bitten then less itchy and annoying
for the
>next half hour then it slowly diminishes to nothing. I have
no welt or
>red marks the following day unlike some people who have visited
me and
>have sores with scabs in the following days after being bitten.
>Please HELP. I need to know what to do. I have tried numerous
things
>inside the house but nothing worked only spraying Raid every
time I see
>them. Outside I know that it kills the ants too. But I need
something
>that will kill them for good. I truly have millions of them
in my yard.
>Take into consideration that East Hawaii is a very wet Place.
There is a
>pile of dead ant bodies around the outside of my door every
week that I
>have to sweep away from the poison that I spray outside around
the house.
> Also, I need something that works to put on my skin after
I get bitten.
>Cortisone cream does not work.
>Stop them moving soil around the island until areas of
infestation have
>been inspected and discovered. I know they are in Papaikou
or the
>surrounding areas. This is a very serious problem that could
potentially
>turn all of paradise into a living hell.
>Sincerely,
>---------
>Keaau, HI
I just started working on it. I'll try to get something out
to you all
by the end of today, for comment re additions/subtractions. Any
thoughts
on agenda items to include (i.e. Petes idea, below) would be much
appreciated. -ellen
Pete Oboyski wrote:
> Have we started putting together an agenda for the November
10th
> meeting yet? Perhaps we can start throwing out ideas and
someone
> (Ellen?) can collect them into a list.
>
Ellen VanGelder
Have we started putting together an agenda for the November
10th
meeting yet? Perhaps we can start throwing out ideas and someone
(Ellen?) can collect them into a list.
Hi Dan and Lori:
You and Lori are more than welcome to become involved in the
Hawaii Ant
Group. The meeting will be at the Plant Quarantine Branch Conference
Room
on November 11 at 9:00am. Let me know if you need directions.
The group also has a mailing list at <antlist@bishopmuseum.org>.
You can
subscribe by contacting Gordon Nishida at "gordo@bishop.bishopmuseum.org".
Hope to see you both at the meeting.
At 08:15 AM 10/29/99 -1000, Dan wrote:
>Dear Neil,
>
>I am interested in participating with the upcoming ant working
group
>meeting, if possible. I will probably begin a project in the
spring
>working with public education in Hilo on the Wasmannia problem.
>
>Also interested in the working group is Lori Lach, a Cornell
student
>working with Argentine ants.
>
>Daniel S. Gruner
>Department of Zoology/U Hawaii
>2538 the Mall - Edmondson Hall
>Honolulu, HI 96822
>Phon (808)956-8678 Fax (808)956-9812
>email: dgruner@hawaii.edu
>
Sorry folks, it appears that the first sending didn't go through to all, so I am resending this. We have had a little trouble as a raider attacked our site yesterday and brought the system down. We're back and operating again, though.
RESEND:
If you have a small project that needs a little funding support,
you might consider the following from Dave Hopper and Mike Richardson
at U.S. Fish & Wildlife. The attachments are Word Perfect
documents, they will convert to Word just fine.
Here's a last-minute request/offer. The FWS is accepting
proposals for on the ground or research conservation
projects for FY2000. The proposal should be prepared in
the attached format (single page) and sent to Mike
Richardson and myself. Smaller projects have a better
chance of getting funded. I am including a proposal to
control Caribbean tree frogs as an example. Anyone in the
HAG is welcome to submit. Funding may be tight, so we
don't promise anything. All proposals must be to us by the
end of the working day, November 4th. sorry for the late
notice.
If you cant get the attachements, let me know and I'll FAX
them to you or who ever wants them.
Dear Dave:
Thank you for your reply regarding the application of Amdro
in our attempt
to eradicate Wasmannia on Kauai. You mentioned the 2nd application
should
be 3-4 months after the 1st. Considering that Kauai is much wetter
than
the Galapagos, should the 2nd application be made earlier than
3-4 months
to factor in the breakdown? Also, would you know what insecticides
are
being used to control the ants in citrus tree orchards and other
crops?
HI all:
A news release on Wasmannia was made on Oct. 21 by the HDOA.
The articles
appeared in the Star Bulletin in that evening's newspaper and
in the
Advertiser the following morning. Both Larry Nakahara and Neil
Reimer were
interviewed by KGMB, KITV, and Channel 8 News and appeared on
the evening
and night news on Oct. 21. On Oct. 22, the calls from the public
started
coming in. Most of the calls came in during the morning and by
afternoon
were just trickling in. About 40 calls were received that day.
Majority of
the calls dealt with fire ants, Solenopsis geminata, and some
of the leads
were checked out but proved to be negative. On Monday and Tuesday,
a few
more calls came in. Some people were kind enough to collect and
send in
samples, and I checked them, but all proved to be negative. So,
as of this
moment, we are not aware of any establishment of W. a. on Oahu.
This is
not to say that it is definitely not established on Oahu, since
they are so
hard to detect, but at least the news is encouraging.
I checked with Pat Conant to see what was the situation on the
Big Island,
and he said he had about 15 calls. Some were checked out, but
proved
negative. There are a few more leads that he wants to check on.
As of this
moment, there have been no new infestations discovered, besides
the known
reported sites. I have not heard of any leads from Maui and Kauai.
We are
still in the process of attempting eradication of the single infestation
site at Kauai.
>From: "Williams, David" <dwilliams@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu>
>To: "'bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu'" <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>Subject: RE: Wasmannia
>Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 08:22:07 -1000
>
>Dear Bernarr:
>
>Sorry to hear about the invasion of W. auropunctata in Hawaii.
They are
>a tough pest ant to get rid of. I will try to answer your
questions:
>
>1) I would apply the 2nd application of Amdro 3-4 months after
the 1st.
>There is no need to apply the 2nd application too soon after
the 1st.
>
>2) Depending on the size of the area, I think a total of 3
or 4
>applications should do the trick. Thus, if during the year,
you make an
>application every 3 months, then you would make 4 applications,
etc.
>
>3) I would check for the presence of W. auropunctata before
each
>application and then every 6 months for approximately 18 months
after
>the final application. If you do not detect any W. auropunctata
during
>the last 12 months, I would consider it eradicated.
>
>Regarding the problem of W. auropunctata in Florida, although
it does
>not appear to be as severe as that in the Galapagos, this
could be
>related to the fact that here in Florida, citrus trees and
other crops
>are treated with insecticides quite heavily which definitely
reduces the
>numbers of workers in the colonies and suppresses the overall
>populations of this ant. I am not familiar with the six varieties
that
>Kempf described and doubt that varietal differences would
play a role.
>I do think that as you mentioned, differences in habitat,
and
>competition with other ants play a bigger role in Florida
than in the
>Galapagos.
>
>I hope that some of this helps you out in your attempts to
eradicate
>this pest ant from Hawaii.
>
>If I can be of further assistance, please don't hesitate to
contact me.
>
>David F. Williams
>USDA-ARS-CMAVE
>P.O. Box 14565
>Gainesville, FL 32604
>Tel. (352) 374-5982
>FAX 352-374-5984
>Email: dwilliams@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu
>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Bernarr Kumashiro [SMTP:bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu]
>>Sent: Thursday, October 21, 1999 8:54 AM
>>To: David Williams
>>Cc: bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu; rhsurvey@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
>>Subject: Wasmannia
>>
>>Dear David:
>>
>>Your name was given to me by both Pat Conant and David
Oi.
>>
>>As you already know, Wasmannia has been discovered in
Hawaii. Last week
>>Wednesday, it was detected on the island of Kauai. We
know of only one
>>site where it is located, and we are contemplating eradication,
using Amdro.
>>
>>We were wondering if you could help us with the following
questions:
>>How many days after the first application should we wait
until the second
>>application is made?
>>How many total applications should be made?
>>As for followups, how often and for how long should checks
be made?
>>I have tried searching for Wasmannia literature as
it pertains to Florida,
>>but found it to be scarce. This leads me to think that
Wasmannia in Florida
>>was not quite the problem that was experienced in the
Galapagos. Besides
>>condusiveness of habitat, competetion with other ants,
could differnce in
>>variety of Wasmannia have played a role? Ulloa Chacon
and Cherix in "The
>>Little Fire Ant Wasmannia auropunctata" Applied Myrmecology
mentions that
>>Kempf said that six varieties have been described: rugosa,
laevifrons,
>>nigricans, obscura, and brevispinosa. Would you know anything
about this?
>>
>>Thank you for all of your help.
>>
>>Bernarr
At 10:41 AM 10/25/99 -1000, lloyd loope wrote:
>Where is T. albipes native? Seems that increased trade with
the source
>area (globalization) could have led to increased importation
of
>genotypes to the U.S., thus enriching the aggresively invasive
>genotype, which then in turn got transported to Oahu and then
to
>neighbor islands. This could turn out to be a good story (potentially
>good topic for a Ph.D. student), especially if there is somewhere
>(Niihau?) where only the original immigrant genotype of T.
albipes
>persists.
HI all:
Another recent phenomenon that I can think of has to do with
the bedbug,
Cimix lectularius. We have specimens dating back to 1918. Prior
to 2-3
years ago, this beast rarely was ever submitted to me for ID.
Since that
time, I have gotten maybe about 4 per year, which is significant
considering we're not the primary agency receiving these types
of insects.
I remember also reading over Entomo-L about 1 year ago that there
were
also increases in reports of the same bedbug in several states.
One
reported that he had not seen it for over 25 years, until recently.
Someone
also said that it was showing resistance to many insecticides,
and another
suggested that the heavy use of insecticides by the homeless people
may
have contributed to the resistance.
Lloyd suggested that increased trade with the source area could
have led to
increased importation of the genotype....... Before the Insect
Specialist
position at Plant Quarantine was created about 10 years ago, I
used to
assist in the insect identifications. This is the position that
Neil Reimer
occupies now. I always had in the back of my mind what Lloyd just
suggested. Whether it was a whitefly, leafminer, aphid, thrips,
or
whatever, it always concerned me that it may be carrying bad genes,
even
if we already had the same species in Hawaii. The general PQ policy
then,
and is still now, was to release the shipment if the infestation
is low and
the species is already established in Hawaii. Sometimes there
is the
possibility of treating for the insects, or cleaning the product,
before
releases are made.The ultimate decision lies with the PQ inspector,
for
they have the authority to reject shipments even if there was
one insect.
On the other side of the coin, even greater problems may emerge
if every
shipment with even one insect
collected was rejected. I think Guam tried this about 25 years
ago, and
prices of goods went sky high, and prices of produce were not
acceptable to
the public. There has to be some working balance to this.
I'm not sure what the long range effect of a bad genotype would
have on the
population as a whole. Nature may have provided a way to neutralize
the
aggressive invasive genotype with a more subtle already established
population. A case in point would be the sweet potato whitefly,
Bemisia
tabaci. This species had been in the US for many years, and caused
only
minor damage at most. Then in the 1980's, there was major, major
crop
damage, symptoms of silvering on cucurbit leaves, and noticable
resistance
to insecticides. Perring and Bellows went even so far as to call
this a new
species, Bemisia argentifolii.Much research went into trying to
control
this whitefly and it was widely publicized. Now the population
has
considerably subsided and damage is at low levels. Along with
this is much
less publicity.
The trend now is to going back to calling this Bemisia tabaci,
Biotype B.
There were lots of problems associated with diagnostic characters
and DNA
fingerprinting, ie. there was a lot of overlapping and it became
very
difficult to draw a line to distinguish the species. Anyway the
whole point
I'm trying to say is that a bad genotype may not be "bad"
forever. Of
course, there is a possiblity that this may work in cycles, alternating
"good " and "bad" years.
At 10:41 AM 10/25/99 -1000, Lloyd wrote:
> [snip]
>Where is T. albipes native? Seems that increased trade with
the source
>area (globalization) could have led to increased importation
of
>genotypes to the U.S., thus enriching the aggresively invasive
>genotype, which then in turn got transported to Oahu and then
to
>neighbor islands. This could turn out to be a good story (potentially
>good topic for a Ph.D. student), especially if there is somewhere
>(Niihau?) where only the original immigrant genotype of T.
albipes
>persists.
[snip]
May be difficult to determine its origin. This is one of those
pantropical
tramp species found just about everywhere. It was originally described
from specimens taken in India in 1861. As of 1891, Forel stated
that it
could be found in Asia and Australia. One internet page from the
University of Florida states that it originated in Okinawa but
I haven't
seen the reference for this.
This story sounds a bit like that of Vespula pensylvanica --
had been on Kauai
for 50-60 years, then exploded on all Hawaiian islands about 1977-78.
Do we have
other examples of this phenomenon? It was the yellowjacket story
which led me to
suggest at our first ant meeting that it may be important for
Hawaii to try to
keep from getting any more importations of Wasmannia. Seems that
genetics could
be very important. I mentioned the Wasmannia thing when I was
at USDA at
Riverdale in September, but they were skeptical. They had the
philiosophy that
once an immigrant is established and you can't eradicate it, there
is no use to
try to keep more of it out. So it would probably be in our interest
to document
the phenomenon.
Where is T. albipes native? Seems that increased trade with
the source
area (globalization) could have led to increased importation of
genotypes to the U.S., thus enriching the aggresively invasive
genotype, which then in turn got transported to Oahu and then
to
neighbor islands. This could turn out to be a good story (potentially
good topic for a Ph.D. student), especially if there is somewhere
(Niihau?) where only the original immigrant genotype of T. albipes
persists.
At 11:58 AM 10/25/99 -1000, Bernarr wrote:
>Technomyrmex albipes has been in Hawaii for a long time.
It is also known
>as the white footed ant because of the light colored tarsi.
I have a
>specimen dating back to 1917, so I know it has been here for
at least that
>long, but I have not bothered to check when it was actually
reported.
>During the earlier years as my capacity as insect systematist,
I can barely
[snip]
The first report I know of was a collection made by Ehrhorn
on Oahu on
April 13, 1912 (PHES 2:237).
I agree with Bernarr. This ant has increased in population
densities in
the last 5 years or so but was never much of a problem before
that. It may
be a different species or a recent introduction of a population
with genes
more adapted to our environment. Is this also a problem on other
island or
just Oahu? Actually that question is probably not important since
I have
seen it moving from Oahu on plant material.
Hi all:
Technomyrmex albipes has been in Hawaii for a long time. It
is also known
as the white footed ant because of the light colored tarsi. I
have a
specimen dating back to 1917, so I know it has been here for at
least that
long, but I have not bothered to check when it was actually reported.
During the earlier years as my capacity as insect systematist,
I can barely
remember if anybody called about this ant. But about 5 years ago,
people
started calling about an ant which came flying into their homes
at night,
attracted to the lights. I identified it as T. albipes. Then about
3 years
ago, people started calling and said that this ant was found infesting
inside of their homes. Now it is probably the most common ant
found
inside of the homes, and possibly on the outside in their yards
too. 9 of
10 of the pest calls refer to this ant. I've noticed over the
entomology
discussion group, Entomo-L, the past year that a few people mentioned
that T. albipes were on the rise in their states too. Just the
other day,
we noticed small dustlike particles of frass falling from the
blossom
end of a banana bunch. Upon dissection we found a tiny colony
of T.
albipes!
Since this is probably happening on a national level , and not
only
Hawaii, I suspect that T. albipes must have greatly changed its
habits or
that we are dealing with another variety or strain. Does anyone
have any
input towards this?
LOOKS REALLY GOOD. Thanks--david
>Hi, all.
>The web page outline follows. Can you comment, make corrections,
or suggest
>additions?
Hi, all.
The web page outline follows. Can you comment, make corrections,
or suggest additions?
Thanks,
Gordon
HAWAII ANT GROUP (HAG)
Welcome to the Hawai'i Ant Group Web Page.
This group is committed to:
Act as a communications center for up-to-date information regarding
ants
in Hawaii.
Monitor and report progress on ant research in Hawaii.
Foster better understanding of problems caused by ants in Hawaii.
Aid local agencies and researchers by acting as a clearinghouse
for ant
information.
Facilitate communication between those interested in ants.
Cooperatively monitor ant dispersals and report new introductions.
Increase public awareness of ants and their present and potential
impact
on Hawaiian ecosystems and quality of life.
Identify and present information on potential ant invaders from
outside
Hawaii.
SUBPAGES:
[BUTTON]: Action page
Reports on activity, ant movements, etc. [EXTRACT FROM ANTLIST?]
Hawaiian Ant Projects [NEED CONTRIBUTIONS]
[BUTTON]: Current Environmental Threats
Argentine Ant
Little Fire Ant
Bigheaded Ant
Longlegged Ant
[BUTTON]: Ant ID
Checklist of species
Link to HEAR ant page.
? Expanded Key by Neal Reimer??
[BUTTON]: Hawaiian Ant Information
Archives of the Hawaii Ant Group.
Literature references (ex Gordon Nishida)
Link to FOURMIS
Hi all:
Just thought that I'll send the following along.
>Date: Mon, 18 Oct 1999 08:11:48 -1000
>From: Ronald Heu -- State of Hawaii <rhsurvey@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>Subject: RE: little fire ant (fwd)
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Fri, 15 Oct 1999 10:58:59 -1000
>From: Brian Bushe <bushe@hawaii.edu>
>Subject: RE: little fire ant
>
>Hey Ron;
>
>Forwarded your message to folks here on this island that get
into the
>field. Here are some responses I thought you would find interesting.
>
>Aloha, Brian
>
>Brian: I have first hand experience with the critter. I got
bitten on the
>neck by the ant at the Papaikou orchard (Hoowaiwai) Kaieie
Road. It is
>very tiny and it hurts.
>Mike Nagao
>
>
>From: "Robert G. Hollingsworth" <rgh@aloha.net>
>To: "Brian Bushe" <bushe@hawaii.edu>
>Subject: RE: little fire ant
>Date: Fri, 15 Oct 1999 09:24:43 -1000
>
>Brian
>
>Thanks for forwarding this message about Wasmania. I have
lived with this
>ant in the Solomons. It can be extremely irritating. It essentially
>ruined a vacation I took with my family on a small island.
I used to
>suffer lots of stings while collecting fruits (especially
ginger and
>Ficus). The sting persists for up to 5 minutes. In my view,
certain types
>of tourism will suffer if this ant is not eradicated from
Hawaii. This ant
>was a major focus of a biological control conference held
in 1995 in Fiji.
>I understand that conference members concluded that no biological
control
>remedies are available.
>
>-Robbie Hollingsworth
>
>
>PS I would appreciate it if you could forward this message
to HDOA people
>who are in a position to make a decision regarding eradication.
>
>
>Robert G. Hollingsworth
>Research Biologist, USDA-ARS
>U.S. Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center
>P.O. Box 4459, Hilo, HI 96720
>fax 808-959-4323 phone 808-959-4349
>e-mail rgh@aloha.net
Hi all:
Just to keep you current of what's happening at the HDOA. re: Wasmannia.
On Wed. Oct. 13, our Plant Pest Control staff, Plant Quarantine
staff,
Lyle Wong, Guy Nagai from Kauai, and Pat Conant from the Big Island
had a
meeting regarding Wasmannia. We also hooked up with Jim Wetterer
from
Florida. Jim gave an excellent account of Wasmannia in Florida
and
Galapagos.. He seemed to confirm what I had suspected - that in
Florida it
wasn't a very major problem, at least no where close to the devastation
in
the Galapagos. Regarding blindness caused in dogs, he also pointed
out that
it was mainly anecdotal, although there was some concern, since
the same
story occured in several different countries. He was asked questions
on
how best to eradicate the ant with applications of Amdro, but
he referred
us to Mark Deyrup, Archbold Biological Station. I emailed Mark
, but still
have not received a reply.
It was decided that an attempt should be made to eradicate the
ant on
Kauai. On October 14, Guy and inspectors from the Hawaii Dept.
of Health
Vector Control Branch began application of Amdro at the Kauai
site.
Myron, from Plant Quarantine Branch, is finalizing plans on inspecting
the movement of plants between islands, especially those going
out from
the Big Island. Bait traps will be set at selected nurseries throughout
the state to determine the presence/absence ot the ant. The Dept.
is
continuing to follow-up on leads to determine when and how the
ant got here
and where infested plants may have been distributed.
A news release is being prepared to be released some time next
week. It
will mention about the Kauai infestation.
Sorry for being vague and tentative at this point. As things become
more
definite, you will be notified.
Meanwhile, Pat found an extension of the Papaikou infestation
at an
adjoining property.
At 12:36 PM 10/13/99 -1000, Ellen VanGelder wrote:
>Does anyone have a copy of the fire ant quarantine preemption
clause? I
>have searched the federal code of regulations, as well as
the federal
>register and the fire ant quarantine reg's, and have been
unable to
>locate a copy. -ellen
>
Ellen:
The preemption clause with regard to RIFA was published in
the Federal
Register when changes were made to the USDA RIFA domestic quarantine
last
May 21, 1999. It was published in the Federal Register Volume
64, No. 98,
pp.27657-27660. The clause is on page 27658 and reads as follows:
"Executive Order 12988. This interim rule has been reviewed
under
Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts
all
State and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with
this rule;
(2) has no retroactive effect; and (3) does not require administrative
proceedings before parties may file suit in court challenging
this rule."
Hope this helps.
>Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 10:40:58 -1000
>Reply-To: viceroy@gate.net
>Sender: Entomology Discussion List <ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA>
>From: Anne Kilmer <viceroy@GATE.NET>
>Organization: Frisky Enterprises
>Subject: Re: minimizing effect of fire ant stings?
>To: ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
>
>I find that after I've had a few stings the body quits reacting.
The
>little darlings are a seasonal problem here though.
>My husband, who is very sensitive, uses an icecube on the
bite; follows
>it with hydro-cortisone ointment, and complains a lot.
>He says aloe (fresh from the plant) is more helpful, but involves
more
>effort to obtain.
>If you refrigerate an aloe leaf, and slice it as needed to
apply to the
>bite, you will enjoy immediate, if temporary relief.
>This is also agreeable if you have encountered urticating
hairs from
>caterpillars, nettles, or spurge nettles ... after you remove
the hairs
>with masking tape or duct tape.
>This summer, I have seen very few W. auropunctata, and Technomyrmex
>albipes has just about vanished. Odd.
>Anne Kilmer
>South Florida
Hi all:
I found the following on Entomo-L to which I subscibe. It was
not
something I solicited. It came on just by chance. I will also
forward a
response by a member, Anne Kilmer, who comes from Florida.
>Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 08:04:04 -1000
>Sender: Entomology Discussion List <ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA>
>From: Susan Johnson <Susan_Johnson@VILLE.MONTREAL.QC.CA>
>Subject: minimizing effect of fire ant stings?
>To: ENTOMO-L@LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
>We have an infestation of Wasmannia auropunctata, the little
fire ant, in
>our indoor tropical forest. Some of the animal keepers react
to the bites
>for several days. Does anyone know of a remedy for reducing
this effect?
>
>
>Susan Johnson, M.Sc.
>Entomologiste
>Biodome de Montreal
>4777 Pierre de Coubertin
>Montreal, Quebec
>Canada H1V 1B3
>Tel: (514)868-3042
>Fax: (514) 868-3065
>Susan_Johnson@ville.montreal.qc.ca
>http://www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/biodome/2-coll/frames2.htm
(siteweb en
>francais)
>http://www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/biodome/e2-coll/eframes2.htm
(english
webpage)
Does anyone have a copy of the fire ant quarantine preemption
clause? I
have searched the federal code of regulations, as well as the
federal
register and the fire ant quarantine reg's, and have been unable
to
locate a copy. -ellen
Having lived in Galapagos, I can say Wasmannia is a major annoyance
problem
for humans,because of its aggressive bite. It is not in the same
league as
the bigger fire ant, but we don't need it. Also Wasmannia was
blamed for
the demise of the coffee fincas of Galapagos, presumably because
no one had
the money to spread around some really nifty chemicals to contain
it. We
don't need the chemicals either. At the least it would destroy
our organic
coffee growers.
Aloha Lloyd,
Thanks for forwarding the message from V. Lebot. It is good
news
that Wasmannia is less of a pest than the first news indicated,
but it
still warrents eradication attempts. Coffee is a reasonably significant
crop in Hawaii and one that cannot stand such a threat. Also,
the state's
efforts at ag diversification could be hindered; thus I think
Lebot 's
message provides sufficient economic justification to proceed
with
eradication. The environment will benefit too. If we succeed with
the
eradication, HDOA and we will be well placed to deal with future
invasions. If we fail, we need to revise our strategies, or disband
and go
back to ineffective hand-wringing. One of the main objectives
for the ant
group now is in providing moral and technical support for HDOA
in dealing
with both the public and this ant pest.
Vincent --
Thanks so much for your prompt response. This is certainly good
news for
Hawaii.
We may have more questions.
Lloyd
______________________________ Reply Separator
Subject: Re: Impacts of Wasmannia auropunctata in the southwest
Pacif
Author: vincent lebot <lebot@vanuatu.com.vu> at NBS-Internet-Gateway
Date: 10/13/99 8:45 AM
Dear Lloyd,
the situation is not that bad. Ants are a problem only for people
picking
up coffee berries in New Caledonia. I worked there for two years
and the
ants were a problem only for their fingers, nobody ever became
blind...
same for the dogs. These statements are really over rated, hyperbole
definitely. Furthermore, if you are not putting your fingers were
the ants
are... they do not bother you.
please do not hesiate to ask questions if necessary
regards
vincent
Vincent Lebot
Dept of Agriculture
PMB 946, Port Vila
Republic of Vanuatu
tel: (678) 25947
fax: (678) 25146
http://www.vanuatu.com.vu/~rootcrops
At 15:14 11/10/99 -0600, you wrote:
>Dr. Lebot --
>
>I got your email address through Misako and Greg Wescott on
Maui. I'm
>a biologist who has worked at Haleakala National Park for
19 years and
>am much involved lately in Maui-wide and statewide efforts
in trying
>to develop strategies and action for slowing/stopping biological
>invasions to Hawaii and other Pacific islands. I also have
your book,
>"Kava: the Pacific Elixir."
>
>The little red fire ant (Wasmannia auropunctata) was recently
(since
>March 1999) found in several locations in Puna, Hawaii. We
have heard
>that the effects of this ant in the southwest Pacific, especially
New
>Caledonia, are horrible -- how the ant attacks the eyes of
dogs and
>makes them blind, etc.
>
>The Hawaii Department of Agriculture says they are willing
to make a
>concerted effort at eradicating this ant, in cooperation with
other
>government agencies, but it would be extremely helpful to
have more
>reliable information on the potential effects of this ant.
For
>example, is the dramatic statement about how it bites the
eyes of
>dogs, makes them blind, and shortens their lifespans to 5
years or
>less an example of hyperbole or is it real? Greg and Misako
thought
>you may be one who has had frontline experience with this
ant and
>could advise us. Obviously, stopping the invasion of this
ant will be
>costly (if it indeed doable). Also, we want to make sure that
we're
>giving accurate information to the public.
>
>Any help you can give on this topic will be very much appreciated.
>
>Lloyd Loope
>USGS-BRD
>c/o Haleakala National Park
>P.O. Box 369
>Makawao, Maui, HI 96768 USA
>
>From: "Oi, David" <doi@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu>
>To: 'Bernarr Kumashiro' <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>Subject: RE: Wasmannia auropunctata
>Date: Fri, 8 Oct 1999 12:11:42 -1000
>X-Mailer: Microsoft Exchange Server Internet Mail Connector
Version
4.0.993.5
>
>Bernarr,
>I glad you have access to Formis. I have not spent much time
with W.
>auropunctata. I have been stung by them and they are a nasty,
tiny ant.
> I have talked with Dave Williams who did some research on
them in the
>Galapagos. He said they seem to be cold sensitive and like
it moist.
>Sounds like Hawaii is ideal. We speculated that the imported
fire ant
>in Florida may possibly have limited it's range.
>
>My personal hope is that you can prevent its establishment
in Hawaii.
>Based on the Galapagos experience, it seems it can become
a major
>problem in tropical areas. Dave also mentioned that they seem
to like
>the lava habitat, so again, Hawaii seems to be at a real risk.
>
>I wish I can be of more assistance,
>
>David H. Oi, Ph.D.
>Research Entomologist
>USDA-ARS CMAVE
>1600 SW 23rd Drive
>Gainesville, Florida 32608
>USA
>phone: (352) 374-5987 fax: 352-374-5818
>e-mail: doi@gainesville.usda.ufl.edu
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Bernarr Kumashiro [mailto:bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu]
>Sent: Wednesday, October 06, 1999 4:18 PM
>To: Oi, David
>Subject: Wasmannia auropunctata
>
>Hi David,
>
>Pat Conant had previously forwarded to me the correspondence
with you
>regarding Wasmannia. There does not seem to be a lot of information
>published on this species as it relates to Florida. Would
you know of any
>references, especially of the impact on ecological concerns
(native
>insects), agriculture, and as a household problem. Entomology
circular
>#248 from Fla. Dept.Agric. and Consumer Serv. mentions that
use of modern
>chemicals helped to reduce the populations, but the reduction
of usage in
>recent years has allowed populations to increase in some areas
into a
>serious problem. Would you have any comments regarding this?
Also, in a
>Scientific American article, there was an anecdote of this
ant blinding
>dogs by biting at their eyes. Is there any evidence of this
in Florida?
>Please forward this message to others who may be able to help.
In Hawaii,
>we have formed an Ant Group consisting of various agencies,
and our current
>main focus will be on Wasmannia and Solenopsis invicta (which
we don't have
>yet). The information you provide will be shared among the
group members.
>
>X-Sender: sdp@pop3.nersp.nerdc.ufl.edu
>Date: Thu, 7 Oct 1999 16:08:30 -1000
>To: Bernarr Kumashiro <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>From: "Sanford D. Porter" <sdp@nersp.nerdc.ufl.edu>
>Subject: Re: FW: Wasmannia auropunctata
>
>>At 02:54 AM 10/7/99 -1000, Sanford D. Porter wrote:
>>>I just receive information that you are looking for
information about
>>>Wasmannia.
>>
>>>Have you tried searching FORMIS?
>>
>>Dear Sanford:
>>
>>Thank you for your suggestion of searching in FORMIS,
but we had done this
>>prior. What I have been looking for is more towards the
lines ,"The ant has
>>been present in Florida since 1929. What effects has it
had on ecological
>>concerns (native insects, etc.), agriculture, and as a
household problem in
>>Florida since that time to present? " We have quite
a bit of information of
>>the devastation of this ant in the Galapagos, but almost
nothing from
>>Florida. Is there any publications that specifically gives
examples of
>>destruction in Florida, or is it the case where Wasmannia
is an occasional
>>problem? If literature is not readily available, what
has been your personal
>>experience with this ant?
>
>Wasmannia does not occur in north Florida. In south Florida,
it is
>apparently a sporadic pest. I have seen it once there. The
densities were
>pretty amazing and it would have clearly been a major nuisance.
I have
>heard that it can also be a problem in citrus. I know of nothing
that is
>not in FORMIS.
>
>>P. ulloa Chacon and D. Cherix in The Little Fire Ant Wasmannia
auropunctata
>>(chapter 27) of Applied Myrmecology , mentions that Kempf
said six varieties
>>have been described: rugosa, australis, laevifrons, nigricans,
obscura, and
>>brevispinosa. Has anyone checked to see if the varieties
in Florida and
>>Galapagos are the same?
>
>I doubt it. You might try writing or calling Mark Deyrup (941
465-2571).
>He would know more about the ants in south Florida.
>
>Sanford
>
>Sanford D. Porter, PhD
>Research Entomologist
>
>-----------------------------------------------------------
>USDA-ARS, CMAVE USDA-ARS, CMAVE
>P.O. Box 14565 1600 S.W. 23rd Drive
>Gainesville, FL 32604 USA Gainesville, FL 32608 USA
>
>Office: 352 374-5914
>Secretary:374-5903
>FAX: 374-5818
>Internet: SDP@NERSP.NERDC.UFL.EDU
>X-Sender: nreimer@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
>Date: Wed, 6 Oct 1999 13:41:25 -1000
>To: Bernarr Kumashiro <bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>From: Neil Reimer <nreimer@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu>
>Subject: Re: Fwd: wasmannia info
>
>[snip]
>from the U.S. since 1983. I wonder if thats due to a change
in wasmannia
>distribution since then, or to a change in the way nurseries
>operate/treat their stock?
>
>Neil:
>
>Do you know the answer to the question above that Ellen poses,
or is it
>worthwhile to follow up?
>
>Bernarr
>[snip]
>
>Don't know. I'll look into it.
>
>aloha,
>
>Neil Reimer
>nreimer@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
>
<x-rich>Bernarr mentioned in an earlier post:
>Wasmannia has recently been discovered on Kauai. Pat had
informed one
>of the HDOA guys on Kauai that plants had recently gone from
one of the
>infested nurseries on the Big Island to a location near Kilauea,
Kauai.
>After setting out baits, Wasmannia was collected and sent
to me for
>identification.
Just to follow up on this... the ants were found after baiting
around the
base of numerous palms which were shipped from the big island
and planted
about 1 month ago. We found ants at 3 of over 200 bait stations.
HDOA
is now in the process of erradicating these populations of
<italic>Wasmannia</italic> on Kauai with Amdro bait.
HDOA also has a control program underway for <italic>Wasmannia</italic>
on the Hawaii. We have also tightened-up our quarantine inspections
and
are discussing the best way to implement a new rule to address
the
situation.
Hi Bernarr and colleagues,
The news from Kauai is not good. I'm looking for Wasmannia
around
Kahului airport on Maui, and have found none so far. Based on
current
knowledge, I vote we start a control program ASAP on both Hawaii
and
Kauai. Better safe than sorry; the sooner we start the greater
chance of
success and the less damage. Yes, the control procedure should/will
change as we go, but that's good if we learn. BTW: In our recent
survey
of Stainback Highway for an EIS, we used flea foggers to obtain
a
reproducible survey of selected arthropod groups along the highway.
That
is, we fogged a standard bit of canopy at 0.5 km- intervals along
the
highway and collected the arthropods that dropped on to a large
plastic
sheet. We got reasonably comparable results from 600 to 3000 feet
altitude. We got 3 spp. of ants (Solenopsis, Anoplolepis, and
Paratrechina) and surprisingly noted that when present they were
consistently the first to drop and almost never recovered from
the fog.
Most other arthropods hit the sheet twitching; some even hyperactive
enough to escape. But the ants were near death by the time they
hit the
sheet. We didn't get Wasmannia in those samples, but the sensitivity
of
some of our other pest ants to pyrethoids suggests a possible
control
method, especially in problematic areas (e.g., orchards).
Hi all:
Wasmannia has recently been discovered on Kauai. Pat had informed
one of
the HDOA guys on Kauai that plants had recently gone from one
of the
infested nurseries on the Big Island to a location near Kilauea,
Kauai.
After setting out baits, Wasmannia was collected and sent to me
for
identification.
I have been trying to gather information of this ant as it
pertains to
Florida and found information to be sparse. It has been known
to occur in
Florida since 1929, but the effects there do not indicate that
it is quite
the same as the devastating effects seen in the Galapagos. I have
tried to
contact people in Florida to see what were their experiences with
this ant.
I will be sending piecemeal, some of their responses. Among the
possibilities are habitats may not be conducive, competetion with
other
establsihed ants, or varietal differences of W. auropunctata.
Literature
mentions that there are 6 varieties of this species. I'll check
into the
possibility of the variety of the Florida and Galapagos ants being
the
same or different. Also , if there is a varietal difference between
Hawaii's and the other two. This may make an interesting study
and perhaps
we can get a specialist in DNA analysis involved.
Knowing what you know about Wasmannia so far, I'd like to hear
from
others what are their views for controlling this ant. Or is it
not the
time to do this and we should wait to the next meeting. I suspect
that any
plan would be subject to revision as more knowledge is accumulated.
AntList is now up and running. All who receive this message
are already
logged onto the List. I apologize for the delay in implementation,
keep the
information coming.
Now on to the web page....
Hi all - Attached is California's Action Plan, and interim
plan for the
red imported fire ant. Pretty interesting, and seems like quite
a
resource. -ellen
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\CA_longterm_plan.pdf"
Bernarr - The info you sent on wasmannia interceptions in california
is
awesome! Pretty interesting that they havent intercepted it on
anything
from the U.S. since 1983. I wonder if thats due to a change in
wasmannia
distribution since then, or to a change in the way nurseries
operate/treat their stock?
Hi all:
A while ago, we were wondering about how Wasmannia could have
come to
Hawaii. Neil Reimer said there were no HDOA records of interceptions
of
Wasmannia for Hawaii.
To clarify whether Wasmannia was established in California,
I contacted my
colleagues at California Dept. of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Raymond
Gill
and Dr. Eric Fisher of the Biosystematic Lab. Eric's reply is
attached. I
also asked Ray if he could send me a listing of all interceptions
of
Wasmannia that they had on file. The listing is hereby attached.
Interestingly, the majority of interceptions were from ornamentals
which
came from Florida. Also, for some reason, they have not had interceptions
from the continental US since 1983.
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\Af001789.doc"
Hi all:
Ellen: I think Hawaii Ant Committee or Hawaii Ant Group are
both fine for
the
name of our group. Between the two, I'd go for the latter (HAG).
Pete: your notes for the Sept. 21 meeting looks very good.
Regarding the
statement "...if a species is already established in the
mainland US, Hawaii
cannot halt the import of products suspected of harboring the
species", Neil
Reimer should be contacted for the clarification, if he hadn't
done so
already.
To all: Information on Wasmannia and Solenopsis invicta can
be found on the
web. Wasmannia advisory was primarily produced by our survey entomologist,
Ron
Heu, and Solenopsis by Neil Reimer.
Here's how you can view:
1. Go to http://www.hawaiiag.org (Hawaii's Agricultural Gateway)
2. At the bottom of the double column, find "Helpful Sites
for Agriculture"
ll
HDOA ll
3. Go down to Plant Industry, then Plant Pest Control Branch
4. Find highlighted New Pest Advisories
5. Find Little Fire Ant
or go to http://www.hawaiiag.org/hdoa/npa.htm
This has been updated as of Sept. 30. It comes to you in blazing
blue living
color! Next Pest Advisory is on citrus blackfly, coming very soon!
Neil's Solenopsis invicta fact sheet is awesome! You can find it at:
1. Helpful sites for Agriculture ll CTAHR ll (see above)
2. At bottom, go to People, publications, and Databases
3. Go to Free CTAHR Publications
4. 2nd columa, 2nd line "Insect Pests"
5. Insect Pests (top of page) 3rd entry "Alien Pest Alert
Red Imported Fire
Ant"
or go directly to http://www2.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/index.asp#ip
>X-Sender: miconia@mail.aloha.net
>Date: Tue, 28 Sep 1999 12:17:11 -1000
>To: bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
>From: Big Island Miconia Team <miconia@aloha.net>
>Subject: Yet another Wasmannia infestation site
>
>Bernarr et al,
>
>Clyde and I put out peanut butter baits at (delete) a nursery
in Panaewa
today.
>We did get Wasmannia on the baits in a fishtail palm wind
break behind the
>warehouse on the property, and next to the employee picnic
bench. The
>windbreak is about 100 ft. long and we got the ant about 2/3
of the way
>down the line. Only one other spot had the ants (roughly 100
yds. from the
>windbreak) and we flagged it. We baited the perimeter fishtail
palm
>windbreak (delete) to the warehouse but got no other
>Wasmannia. We have not done the Kurtistown side of the warehouse
yet and
>they could be there.
>
>The reason we baited this site is because (delete) used to
own
>(lease??) this lot and he is the one that sold fishtail palms
to
(delete)in Papaikou. It is possible that
>(delete) he got the ant with those palms when he planted his
windbreak. I
>told Mel Enriques (HDOA Plant Quarantine) about this discovery.
>To be continued,
>Pat C.
>
Bernarr's Note:
The infested area in the windbreak is 75' long and 10' wide. There
are now
3 general areas where Wasmannia is now known on the Big Island-
Hawaiian
Paradise Park Subdivision, Kapoho, and Papaiko.
Gordon - thanks for wasmannia info!!! Maybe we can put that
on the web
page when its up and running. Speaking of which, THANKS SO MUCH
for
doing all this webpage/listserve stuff!!! Its such a great resource,
but I know it is a lot of work for you. Again, muchas gracias!!
Anyway
- just wanted to let you know that much of the information I got
from
Wetterer about wasmannia was from a couple of unpublished manuscripts
he
sent. I will contact him and ask if its ok to circulate them on
the
listserver (I'll also ask if we can put it on the web page, in
case you
think it would be good to have copies there too.) Also, attached
is a
quick and dirty outline of ant research we've done here at Haleakala
(attached), for the list server. -ellen
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\HALEant_research.doc"
>X-Sender: miconia@mail.aloha.net
>Date: Tue, 28 Sep 1999 05:27:24 -1000
>To: bkumash@elele.peacesat.hawaii.edu
>From: Big Island Miconia Team <miconia@aloha.net>
>Subject: Re: Wasmannia auropunctata found in Hawaii
>
>X-Sender: causton@204.3.242.194
>Date: Mon, 27 Sep 1999 15:45:30 -0600
>To: Big Island Miconia Team <miconia@aloha.net>
>From: "causton@fcdarwin.org.ec" <causton@fcdarwin.org.ec>
>Subject: Re: Wasmannia auropunctata found in Hawaii
>
>Dear Patrick
>
>I am very sorry to hear that Wasmannia auropunctata has reached
Hawaii. We
>have great problems with this ant as a predator of invertebrates
and it is
>found throughout the archipelago. In fact, we hope to start
an eradication
>program in Marchena next year. Let's hope that you can eradicate
it before
>it gets too out of hand.
>
>I have talked to my colleague, Lazaro Roque, who is more familiar
with ant
>control in Galapagos than I am. According to him, chemical
ant baits were
>the only methods tested (including Max force and Logic) with
Amdro being
>the most successful (see Williams and Whelan. 1992. J. Entomol.Sci.
27(1).
>29-34.
>
>We would be very interested to hear of your results with growth
regulators
>and Amdro, and wish you the very best of luck.
>>
>Charlotte Causton
>Charlotte Causton PhD
>Research Entomologist
>Charles Darwin Research Station
>Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands
>
>Postal address:
>Charles Darwin Research Station
>A.P. 17-01-3891
>Quito
>Ecuador
>
>At 01:07 PM 23/09/1999 -0700, you wrote:
>Dear Dr. Causton,
>
> I got your email address from Dr. Sanford Porter via a former
University
>of Hawaii student (Dr. David Oi) who is now working for USDA
in
>Gainesville, Florida. We discovered W. auropunctata in Hawaii
in March of
>this year. We now know of 5 relatively widespread infestation
sites and
>there may be others.
>Dr. David Williams at Gainesville has been very helpful in
providing advice
>on control of Wasmannia based on work done in th