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Houston braces for invasion of 'Crazy Ants'
Fox News ^ | March 26, 2014 | Robert Gearty

Posted on 03/27/2014 6:43:30 AM PDT by listenhillary

This is one horror film plot that may be all too real: Billions of voracious ants are about to descend on the Houston area, destroying entire homes and anything else that gets in their way.

Rasberry Crazy Ants, even more destructive and mobile than their angry cousins, fire ants, are just weeks away from descending on the largest city in Texas. Since 2008, the ants, which entomologists believe came to Texas from South America aboard a cargo ship in the 1930s, have expanded their presence to 27 counties from just eight. Once in a home, they zero in on electrical systems, chewing through insulation and causing short circuits and general havoc.

“I’ve been in houses where every time you took a step you’d literally be stepping on thousands of ants with each step,” exterminator Tom Rasberry told FoxNews.com.

The hairy, reddish-brown ant is named after Rasberry because he was the first one to spot the insect in a Houston suburb in 2002. The ant, also known as the Tawny Crazy Ant, is even known to fight the fierce-stinging fire ant, another Texas scourge. Dormant until late April, Rasberry Crazy Ants thrive as temperatures heat up, prompting fears of a new advance in the coming weeks.

Continued

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: ants; crazyants; globalwarmingscare; houston; humidity; immigration; imports; itssohot; nylanderiafulva; theweather
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To: listenhillary

Biological warfare against insects is both high and low tech.

The low tech part is bizarre, basically getting 500 gallons of a type of insect in a stainless steel vat, mashing them, then seeing is anything grows on the mash. If it can eat the mashed insects, it might be able to eat the living ones.

The home, low tech version, used against fire ants, is to get a quart glass jar, put some honey in it, and set it next to an anthill. When there are a bunch of ants in it, pour in some boiling water to kill them, seal the jar, and put it in a cool, dark place for a couple of weeks. Then, when a fungus or something grows on the water, pour the water over the nest. Typically it will wipe out both that nest, and several other nests within about 10 yards.

It will be a bit trickier with crazy ants, since they do not make obvious nests, just using small holes in the ground over their massive, underground nest. However, it would be worth it to try the same technique.


41 posted on 03/27/2014 7:47:55 AM PDT by yefragetuwrabrumuy (WoT News: Rantburg.com)
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To: yefragetuwrabrumuy

Worth a try.


42 posted on 03/27/2014 7:53:05 AM PDT by MrEdd (vHeck? Geewhiz Cripes, thats the place where people who don't believe in Gosh think they aint going.)
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To: SomeCallMeTim
Gotta be more redneck..................
43 posted on 03/27/2014 7:57:25 AM PDT by Red Badger (LIberal is an oxymoron......................)
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To: Lazamataz

I don’t know if it will work for these ants but a friend of mine leaves opened packages of artificial sweetener around and it kills fire ants that eat it.


44 posted on 03/27/2014 7:59:09 AM PDT by IMR 4350
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To: Lazamataz

We used grits in SC on fire ants...pretty effective...cheap and worth a try...


45 posted on 03/27/2014 8:01:10 AM PDT by SZonian (Throwing our allegiances to political parties in the long run gave away our liberty.)
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To: IMR 4350; Lazamataz

There is also a product called Terro, a borax powder mixed in a syrup that ants love...we used it to eliminate two nests that were under our foundation and coming into the house and it eliminated another that was coming in from the neighbor’s house.

http://www.terro.com/


46 posted on 03/27/2014 8:05:41 AM PDT by SZonian (Throwing our allegiances to political parties in the long run gave away our liberty.)
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To: SZonian

great product.


47 posted on 03/27/2014 8:06:32 AM PDT by I_Publius
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To: Dr. Bogus Pachysandra
WHAT?! ..a wok dish w/o Curry & Ginger?
waiting for the obligatory pic(s).

48 posted on 03/27/2014 8:08:04 AM PDT by skinkinthegrass (The end move in politics is always to pick up a gun..0'Caligula / 0'Reid / 0'Pelosi)
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To: listenhillary
I did have an ant infestation in a clock radio.


49 posted on 03/27/2014 8:09:50 AM PDT by Focault's Pendulum (I live in NJ....' Nuff said!)
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To: I_Publius

I won’t use anything else...

It is a bit problematic in a way though...the ants SWARM to the bait so you need to feed them extra to keep them from wandering away from your baited area...

Then after a couple of days...nothing...then a few days later another, slightly smaller swarm arrives (hatched eggs)....a few days later...nothing...then a few days later, another, even smaller swarm arrives and we repeat the cycle maybe one more time until NOTHING.


50 posted on 03/27/2014 8:10:52 AM PDT by SZonian (Throwing our allegiances to political parties in the long run gave away our liberty.)
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To: Rummyfan
Or the 70's!!

Phase IV


51 posted on 03/27/2014 8:11:16 AM PDT by RikaStrom ("To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize." ~Voltaire)
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To: Red Badger

Think I’ve seen her pic before. Doesn’t she make cigars in Cuba?


52 posted on 03/27/2014 8:12:52 AM PDT by onedoug
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To: CynicalBear

Diazinon was great until they outlawed it.


53 posted on 03/27/2014 8:15:03 AM PDT by Resolute Conservative
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To: I_Publius
i noticed, there were no comments..
everyone sick/pukin' reading the article?

54 posted on 03/27/2014 8:19:14 AM PDT by skinkinthegrass (The end move in politics is always to pick up a gun..0'Caligula / 0'Reid / 0'Pelosi)
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To: Sigurdrifta
Or trenches filled with burning oil.


55 posted on 03/27/2014 8:23:05 AM PDT by Iron Munro (The future ain't what it use to be -- Yogi Berra)
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To: Dr. Bogus Pachysandra
Add chocolate for a real treat!
56 posted on 03/27/2014 8:23:16 AM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: listenhillary

Homeowners need to immediately rent “The Naked Jungle”, once again Charlton Heston can save the day! I kind of like the ant flambe method.


57 posted on 03/27/2014 8:24:07 AM PDT by Mastador1 (I'll take a bad dog over a good politician any day!)
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To: Fresh Wind

Terro is good - and that outfit has Deltadust, which I’ve heard is also very good.


58 posted on 03/27/2014 8:28:38 AM PDT by spankalib ("I freed a thousand slaves. I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves.")
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To: listenhillary

Works on some ants:

Peanut butter mixed with diatomaceous earth

OR

Peanut butter mixed with Sevin dust


59 posted on 03/27/2014 8:30:07 AM PDT by Iron Munro (The future ain't what it use to be -- Yogi Berra)
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To: smokingfrog

Did you have all the alarms set at the same time and woke up the entire neighborhood?


60 posted on 03/27/2014 8:30:08 AM PDT by VerySadAmerican (".....Barrack, and the horse Mohammed rode in on.")
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