Bait acceptance and seasonal activity of the Asian needle ant, Brachyponera (=Pachycondyla) chinensis (Emery), an emerging medically important species, in central Georgia

The Asian needle ant, Brachyponera (=Pachycondyla) chinensis (Emery), is an invasive ant that inhabits our hardwood forests in the southern states. These ants have a negative ecological impact on mature temperate forests. This ant fauna eliminates the native species or reduces their abundance, therefore major roles, such as seed dispersal and predation of forest pests, are unfilled. B. chinensis can pose a public health threat due to their ability to sting. At present, there is no formal effective management plan to control B. chinensis. I developed four objectives to determine the bait efficiency, bait preference, food preference, and seasonal activity for B. chinensis.

Objectives include (1) bait preference trials; to evaluate the acceptance rate of four commercial baits; Advance 375 A, granular bait (0.011% abamectin), Advion Insect Granule bait (0.22% indoxacarb), Niban Granular bait (5% orthoboric acid), Advion Fire Ant (0.045%indoxacarb). I designed this assay so that Asian needle ants, while foraging in a random manner, would eventually encounter a bait granule. (2), field bait efficiency trials; I constructed a twenty plot transect to establish whether B. chinensis is carrying the bait to the colonies under field conditions. I bated each plot with one of the four baits (per label) and a control. (3), Pitfall traps; to establish the seasonal abundance of B. chinensis with native ant taxa. (4). Food preference trials; Evaluate four foods; egg yolk, tuna mixed with corn syrup, sardine, and anchovy, to determine the feeding preference of B. chinensis as a basis for bait development.