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CNN's Greg Lamotte reports on the impact of this insect invader
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December 2, 1998
Web posted at: 9:45 p.m. EST (0245 GMT)

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, California (CNN) -- A potentially deadly invasion is under way in Southern California.

Millions of fire ants have marched to within feet of posh neighborhoods -- carrying the capacity to kill.

"I think there's probably 50 to 60 people, documented cases, where fire ants killed," said David Williams of the U.S. Agriculture Department. "They actually died from the sting, going into shock."

Those most susceptible to the stinging insects are children and the elderly.

"I've heard horrible stories about children who stood on ant hills and no one was watching ... but I'm always watching my children," said one California mother.

Each fire ant mound can contain up to 200,000 ants. When the insects feel threatened, they swarm and deliver multiple stings that burn and result in blisters.

The aggressive ants move in and dominate an area. Few other things, including small wildlife, are able to survive.

Fire ants were first discovered in California about a year ago. Now they have moved close to heavily populated areas and are drawing the attention of state and federal officials.

But the small size of the invasion may give authorities a chance to wipe out the colonies.

"We acknowledge that we don't have the tools to eradicate the fire ant from large expanses of land at this time," said entomologist Bart Drees.

South American immigrants

Native to South America, fire ants are believed to have arrived in North America aboard ships in the early 1930s.

Fire ants now infest some 278 million acres in 11 other states: Texas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

Left alone, the insects expand their territory about three miles per year. But they have recently spread thousands of miles, mostly by hitchhiking in potted nursery plants.

The ants not only threaten humans, they also attack various agricultural products. Southern California is already dealing with a small outbreak of Mediterranean fruit flies.

Now with fire ants on the move into populous and agriculturally rich areas, California will probably spend millions of dollars in a war against the stinging insects.

Correspondent Greg LaMotte contributed to this report.