scholarly journals Use of an Argentine Ant, Linepithema humile, Semiochemical to Deliver an Acute Toxicant

Insects ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 171
Author(s):  
Benjamin Gochnour ◽  
Daniel Suiter ◽  
Jerry Davis ◽  
Qingguo Huang
Keyword(s):  
Methylene Chloride ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
The United States ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Outdoor Environment ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Property Owners ◽  
Methylene Chloride Extract ◽  
Ant Control

The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, is an invasive nuisance, agricultural, and ecological pest from South America. In the United States, its primary distribution is in California and the Southeast. The structural pest control industry responds to property owner complaints when this ant’s populations become problematic and a persistent nuisance. Actions taken to control Argentine ants in the urban and suburban environment are typically complaint-driven, and often involve the application of insecticide sprays applied to the outdoor environment by professional pest managers. In California, and elsewhere, spray treatments of various residual insecticides by property owners and pest management professionals has resulted in significant runoff and in subsequent surface water contamination. As a result, an immediate need exists to develop alternative methods of ant control targeted at reducing environmental contamination. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential for the development of an alternative method of toxicant delivery focused on the Argentine ant’s behavior modifying cuticular chemistry. In short, methanol and hexane washes of Argentine ant pupae applied to paper dummies were handled significantly more by worker ants than the paper dummies that did not contain the solvent extracts. Additionally, paper wicks soaked in a methylene chloride wash from Argentine ant cadavers, air dried, and then treated with fipronil, were removed by worker ants and placed on a midden pile at the same rate (≈86% to 99% removal at 1 h) as untreated and fipronil-treated ant cadavers. The paper wicks that did not contain the methylene chloride extract were ignored by the worker ants. After three days, the mortality of the ants exposed to the fipronil-treated wicks or the ant cadavers were dose-related. In conclusion, our study suggests that there is potential for the use of ant semiochemicals for the delivery of acute toxicants.

scholarly journals Alternative Methods of Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Control with Emphasis on the Argentine Ant, Linepithema humile

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 487
Author(s):  
Daniel R. Suiter ◽  
Benjamin M. Gochnour ◽  
Jacob B. Holloway ◽  
Karen M. Vail
Keyword(s):  
Trail Pheromone ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Mass Trapping ◽  
Source Reduction ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
Use Patterns ◽  
Ant Control

Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), especially the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr), can be significant nuisance pests in urban and suburban environments. Conventional interventions have primarily relied on the use of chemical insecticides, namely fipronil and bifenthrin, applied as residual, contact treatments around the outside perimeter of infested structures. Despite tightening regulation limiting the scope of insecticide applications in urban settings, dependence on these products to manage ants continues, resulting in significant water contamination. The U.S. EPA, in response, has further restricted the use patterns of many insecticides used for ant control in professional and over-the-counter markets. The purpose of this review is to summarize the relevant literature associated with controlling nuisance pest ants, with emphasis on L. humile, without the use of liquid broadcast applications of EPA-registered insecticides while focusing on low-impact, alternative (to broadcast applications) pest control methods. Specific subsections include Trail Pheromone; Use of Behavior-Modifying Chemicals; Mass Trapping; Hydrogels, “Virtual” Baiting, and Exceedingly-Low Bait Concentrations; Food Source Reduction; Deterrents; and RNA Interference (RNAi).

scholarly journals Bacterial diversity and viral discovery in the invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Alexandra Sébastien
Keyword(s):  
Biological Control ◽  
Invasive Species ◽  
Population Dynamics ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Bacterial Diversity ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Invasive Ants ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Species Population

<p>Invasive species can lead to major economic and ecological issues. For this reason, biological controls are being developed in order to help with invasive species population management. Pathogenic bacteria and viruses offer good biological control opportunities as both micro-organisms have played a role in natural population declines. However, beneficial bacteria and viruses associated with the targeted invasive species may interfere with biological controls, by protecting their hosts from infections. Previous knowledge on both pathogenic and beneficial bacteria and viruses present in invasive species may then support the development of an active and efficient biological control.  The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, is a South American invasive ant species that has successfully spread over five continents. The ants were introduced to New Zealand after a complex invasion path, from Argentina their home range to Europe, then to Australia and finally to New Zealand. In their new environments, invasive Argentine ants affect species diversity and can cause agricultural losses. In the absence of any biological controls, the Argentine ant population is controlled by chemical sprays and poison baits. Management of these invasive ants in New Zealand is estimated to cost NZ$ 60 million a year. The Argentine ant population in New Zealand was reported to have unexpectedly declined. It was hypothesised that pathogens were the cause of this population collapse.  In this study, bacteria and viruses present in the invasive ants were investigated using 454 sequencing and Illumina sequencing for future developments of possible biological controls for the Argentine ants, and a better understanding of the observed population decline in New Zealand. Bacterial diversity present in Argentine ants either declined or diminished along the invasion pathway. At the same time, the invasive ants maintained a core of nine bacteria genera, including Lactobacillus and Gluconobacter, two bacterial genera with members known for their beneficial associations with honey bees. The presence of these core bacteria may have participated in the success of Argentine ants in their new environments. In the laboratory, the use of ampicillin and gentamicin antibiotics on the ants increased bacterial diversity present in the ants. Furthermore, ampicillin, kanamycin and spectinomycin antibiotic treatments increased ant survival but did not affect the ant fitness or intra-species aggressiveness. Only spectinomycin treated ants presented a higher level of inter-species aggressiveness. Bacterial diversity may play an important role in the ant health and at length population dynamics.  Finally, Argentine ants are the hosts of two viruses: the Deformed wing virus (DWV) involved in colony collapse disorder in honey bees, and Linepithema humile virus 1 (LHUV-1), a new virus related to DWV. Both viruses actively replicate within the ants, indicating a possible reservoir role of the ants. However, the effects of the viruses on the ants are not yet known. Further viral infection in the laboratory under different stress conditions and / or antibiotic treatment will give an insight in the role played by these viruses in the observed population collapse of Argentine ants in New Zealand. LHUV-1 may offer a possibility in the development of the first biological control for Argentine ants, depending on its specificity and its effects.  This dissertation provides a first insight in the core bacteria as well as potential harmful viruses present in Argentine ants. These bacteria and viruses may play a role in the ant population dynamics. Invasive species may co-introduce harmful pathogens with them, and participate to the spread of local ones. The pathogens may affect both invasive ants and native species population dynamics.</p>

scholarly journals Invasive ants carry novel viruses in their new range and form reservoirs for a honeybee pathogen

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 20150610 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Sébastien ◽  
Philip J. Lester ◽  
Richard J. Hall ◽  
Jing Wang ◽  
Nicole E. Moore ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Microbial Diversity ◽  
Animal Species ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Invasive Ants ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Hymenopteran Species ◽  
Exotic Animal

When exotic animal species invade new environments they also bring an often unknown microbial diversity, including pathogens. We describe a novel and widely distributed virus in one of the most globally widespread, abundant and damaging invasive ants (Argentine ants, Linepithema humile ). The Linepithema humile virus 1 is a dicistrovirus, a viral family including species known to cause widespread arthropod disease. It was detected in samples from Argentina, Australia and New Zealand. Argentine ants in New Zealand were also infected with a strain of Deformed wing virus common to local hymenopteran species, which is a major pathogen widely associated with honeybee mortality. Evidence for active replication of viral RNA was apparent for both viruses. Our results suggest co-introduction and exchange of pathogens within local hymenopteran communities. These viral species may contribute to the collapse of Argentine ant populations and offer new options for the control of a globally widespread invader.

scholarly journals Experience influences aggressive behaviour in the Argentine ant

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 152-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen Van Wilgenburg ◽  
Johanna Clémencet ◽  
Neil D. Tsutsui
Keyword(s):  
Aggressive Behaviour ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Mere Exposure ◽  
Aggressive Response ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Individual Animal ◽  
Argentine Ants

All animals interact with conspecifics during their life, and nearly all also display some form of aggression. An enduring challenge, however, is to understand how the experiences of an individual animal influence its later behaviours. Several studies have shown that prior winning experience increases the probability of initiating fights in later encounters. Using behavioural assays in the laboratory, we provide evidence that, in Argentine ants ( Linepithema humile ), the mere exposure to an opponent, without the encounter escalating to a fight, also increases the probability that it will display aggression in later encounters. Argentine ant workers differ in their propensity to attack non-colonymates, with some ants repeatedly aggressive and others consistently more docile. Although 78 per cent of the workers were consistent in their behaviour from one encounter to the next, workers that did change their behaviour after an encounter with a non-colonymate more often changed from non-aggressive to aggressive, rather than the reverse. Surprisingly, a single encounter with a non-colonymate increased a worker's propensity to fight in encounters up to a week later. An encounter with a non-colonymate also increased the probability that a worker would attack ants from a colony that it had not previously encountered. Thus, these interactions lowered the overall aggression threshold, rather than stimulating a specific aggressive response to a particular foreign colony. Finally, our data suggest that aggression towards non-colonymates increases with age.

scholarly journals Controlling invasive Argentine ants, Linepithema humile, in conservation areas using horizontal insecticide transfer

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Grzegorz Buczkowski ◽  
Theresa C. Wossler
Keyword(s):  
Horizontal Transfer ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Effective Control ◽  
Conservation Areas ◽  
Invasive Ants ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Management Tools

AbstractInvasive ants are major agricultural and urban pests and a significant concern in conservation areas. Despite long history of control and eradication efforts, invasive ants continue to spread around the globe driven by a multitude of synergistic factors. Lack of effective management tools is one of the biggest challenges in controlling invasive ants. The goal of the current study was to improve the efficacy and safety of ant management and to develop effective control strategies for sensitive conservation areas. We utilized the Argentine ant (Linepithema humile) as a model system to evaluate a target-specific pesticide delivery system that exploits the interconnected nature of social insect colonies to distribute a toxicant effectively within the colony. The approach, based entirely on horizontal transfer, takes advantage of various levels of social interactions in ant colonies to disseminate a toxicant throughout the colony. Results of laboratory studies coupled with LC/MS/MS analysis demonstrate that fipronil is toxic to Argentine ants in extremely small (nanogram) quantities and is efficiently transferred from a single treated donor to multiple recipients, causing significant secondary mortality. A field study was conducted in native fynbos plots invaded by Argentine ants. The study consisted of collecting naïve workers, treating them with fipronil, and releasing them within invaded plots. Results show that the release of fipronil-treated ants reduced Argentine ant abundance by >90% within 24 h. The horizontal transfer approach offers environmental benefits with regard to pesticide use in ecologically sensitive environments and appears ideally suited for ant management in conservation areas.

Assimilation and Toxicity of Boron in the Argentine Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

2002 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 193-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
John H. Klotz ◽  
Chris Amrhein ◽  
Steven McDaniel ◽  
Michael K. Rust ◽  
Donald A. Reierson
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Boric Acid ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Solution Ph ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Water Solutions ◽  
Low Concentrations

Assimilation of boron by Argentine ants, Linepithema humile (Mayr), fed boric acid—sucrose water solutions was affected by the addition of sorbitol. Concentrations of 10 and 20% sorbitol reduced boron assimilation by 38 and 67%, respectively, thereby significantly reducing the toxicity of the solutions. The effect of solution pH on mortality indicated that the ionized borate molecule was less toxic than the neutral boric acid species. Electron microscopy revealed that ants fed low concentrations of boric acid (0.5%) show gross abnormalities in the microvilli and cells lining the midgut.

scholarly journals Bacterial diversity and viral discovery in the invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Alexandra Sébastien
Keyword(s):  
Biological Control ◽  
Invasive Species ◽  
Population Dynamics ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Bacterial Diversity ◽  
Linepithema Humile ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Invasive Ants ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Species Population

<p>Invasive species can lead to major economic and ecological issues. For this reason, biological controls are being developed in order to help with invasive species population management. Pathogenic bacteria and viruses offer good biological control opportunities as both micro-organisms have played a role in natural population declines. However, beneficial bacteria and viruses associated with the targeted invasive species may interfere with biological controls, by protecting their hosts from infections. Previous knowledge on both pathogenic and beneficial bacteria and viruses present in invasive species may then support the development of an active and efficient biological control.  The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, is a South American invasive ant species that has successfully spread over five continents. The ants were introduced to New Zealand after a complex invasion path, from Argentina their home range to Europe, then to Australia and finally to New Zealand. In their new environments, invasive Argentine ants affect species diversity and can cause agricultural losses. In the absence of any biological controls, the Argentine ant population is controlled by chemical sprays and poison baits. Management of these invasive ants in New Zealand is estimated to cost NZ$ 60 million a year. The Argentine ant population in New Zealand was reported to have unexpectedly declined. It was hypothesised that pathogens were the cause of this population collapse.  In this study, bacteria and viruses present in the invasive ants were investigated using 454 sequencing and Illumina sequencing for future developments of possible biological controls for the Argentine ants, and a better understanding of the observed population decline in New Zealand. Bacterial diversity present in Argentine ants either declined or diminished along the invasion pathway. At the same time, the invasive ants maintained a core of nine bacteria genera, including Lactobacillus and Gluconobacter, two bacterial genera with members known for their beneficial associations with honey bees. The presence of these core bacteria may have participated in the success of Argentine ants in their new environments. In the laboratory, the use of ampicillin and gentamicin antibiotics on the ants increased bacterial diversity present in the ants. Furthermore, ampicillin, kanamycin and spectinomycin antibiotic treatments increased ant survival but did not affect the ant fitness or intra-species aggressiveness. Only spectinomycin treated ants presented a higher level of inter-species aggressiveness. Bacterial diversity may play an important role in the ant health and at length population dynamics.  Finally, Argentine ants are the hosts of two viruses: the Deformed wing virus (DWV) involved in colony collapse disorder in honey bees, and Linepithema humile virus 1 (LHUV-1), a new virus related to DWV. Both viruses actively replicate within the ants, indicating a possible reservoir role of the ants. However, the effects of the viruses on the ants are not yet known. Further viral infection in the laboratory under different stress conditions and / or antibiotic treatment will give an insight in the role played by these viruses in the observed population collapse of Argentine ants in New Zealand. LHUV-1 may offer a possibility in the development of the first biological control for Argentine ants, depending on its specificity and its effects.  This dissertation provides a first insight in the core bacteria as well as potential harmful viruses present in Argentine ants. These bacteria and viruses may play a role in the ant population dynamics. Invasive species may co-introduce harmful pathogens with them, and participate to the spread of local ones. The pathogens may affect both invasive ants and native species population dynamics.</p>

scholarly journals Application Method of a Simplified Heat and Moisture Transfer Model of Building Construction in Residential Buildings

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (14) ◽  
pp. 4180
Author(s):  
Joowook Kim ◽  
Michael Brandemuehl
Keyword(s):  
Latent Heat ◽  
Moisture Transfer ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Outdoor Environment ◽  
Transfer Model ◽  
Heat And Moisture Transfer ◽  
Heat And Moisture

Several building energy simulation programs have been developed to evaluate the indoor conditions and energy performance of buildings. As a fundamental component of heating, ventilating, and air conditioning loads, each building energy modeling tool calculates the heat and moisture exchange among the outdoor environment, building envelope, and indoor environments. This paper presents a simplified heat and moisture transfer model of the building envelope, and case studies for building performance obtained by different heat and moisture transfer models are conducted to investigate the contribution of the proposed steady-state moisture flux (SSMF) method. For the analysis, three representative humid locations in the United States are considered: Miami, Atlanta, and Chicago. The results show that the SSMF model effectively complements the latent heat transfer calculation in conduction transfer function (CTF) and effective moisture penetration depth (EMPD) models during the cooling season. In addition, it is found that the ceiling part of a building largely constitutes the latent heat generated by the SSMF model.

scholarly journals Examination and Comparison of Theta Band Connectivity in Left- and Right-Hand Dominant Individuals throughout a Motor Skill Acquisition

Symmetry ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 728
Author(s):  
Jessica McDonnell ◽  
Nicholas P Murray ◽  
Sungwoo Ahn ◽  
Stefan Clemens ◽  
Erik Everhart ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Information Integration ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Parietal Lobe ◽  
The United States ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Population Difference ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Neurological Differences

The majority of the population identifies as right-hand dominant, with a minority 10.6% identifying as left-hand dominant. Social factors may partially skew the distribution, but it remains that left-hand dominant individuals make up approximately 40 million people in the United States alone and yet, remain underrepresented in the motor control literature. Recent research has revealed behavioral and neurological differences between populations, therein overturning assumptions of a simple hemispheric flip in motor-related activations. The present work showed differentially adaptable motor programs between populations and found fundamental differences in methods of skill acquisition highlighting underlying neural strategies unique to each population. Difference maps and descriptive metrics of coherent activation patterns showed differences in how theta oscillations were utilized. The right-hand group relied on occipital parietal lobe connectivity for visual information integration necessary to inform the motor task, while the left-hand group relied on a more frontal lobe localized cognitive based approach. The findings provide insight into potential alternative methods of information integration and emphasize the importance for inclusion of the left-hand dominant population in the growing conceptualization of the brain promoting the generation of a more complete, stable, and accurate understanding of our complex biology.

scholarly journals The widespread collapse of an invasive species: Argentine ants ( Linepithema humile ) in New Zealand

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 430-433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meghan Cooling ◽  
Stephen Hartley ◽  
Dalice A. Sim ◽  
Philip J. Lester
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Invasive Species ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Argentine Ant ◽  
Environmental Costs ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Ant Communities ◽  
Mean Survival Time ◽  
Colony Collapse ◽  
Increasing Temperature

Synergies between invasive species and climate change are widely considered to be a major biodiversity threat. However, invasive species are also hypothesized to be susceptible to population collapse, as we demonstrate for a globally important invasive species in New Zealand. We observed Argentine ant populations to have collapsed in 40 per cent of surveyed sites. Populations had a mean survival time of 14.1 years (95% CI = 12.9–15.3 years). Resident ant communities had recovered or partly recovered after their collapse. Our models suggest that climate change will delay colony collapse, as increasing temperature and decreasing rainfall significantly increased their longevity, but only by a few years. Economic and environmental costs of invasive species may be small if populations collapse on their own accord.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document