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Introduction
The Red Imported Fire
Ant is a formidable foe, which will overtake your property and cause
you pain and misery. This brochure will guide you on how to
detect Fire Ants that may be infesting your yard. If Fire
Ants are detected, your home will be treated until they are
gone, at no cost by a qualified
Fire Ant Control Technician.
The Fire Ant “Pest
Test”
In order to know if you have Fire Ants, Orange County residents
can perform a simple test. On a warm day,
place a potato chip (an ideal bait for Fire Ants) at 25 feet
intervals throughout your property, wait three to four hours, then
look for any
reddish brown ants feeding on the chips. If you find
thee two colored ants feeding on the potato chips, the Fire Ant Authority wants you
to send in a sample.
Collecting Ants
Ants found on the potato chips are easily removed by dabbing them
with the tip of a cotton swab saturated with liquid fabric
or dishwashing detergent. The detergent quickly kills the
ants and preserves them for testing.
Place the cotton swab with the ants (six to ten ants are desirable)
in a ziplock bag. Place the bag in freezer for 15 minutes
to ensure all ants are dead. The sealed bag must be of a size
that will fit inside a standard letter envelope.
Submitting Ants
for Identification
Fill out the Fire Ant Sample Submission Form, place the form and
ant sample in an envelope, and mail to: Orange County Fire
Ant Authority, P.O. Box 59, Santa Ana, CA 92702.
Your submission will be identified and you will be notified by our
lab. If your sample is identified as Fire Ants,
you will be asked to schedule a treatment time.
Fire Ant Sample
Submission Form
Online
submission form
Click
here to see video of the pest test (12.2MB MPEG)
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