Complaints of black ants infesting homes and gardens along Suva-Nausori corridor

Complaints of black ants infesting homes and gardens along the Suva-Nausori corridor has been received by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Tests carried out by the Institute of Applied Science Laboratory at The University of the South Pacific and the Plant Health and Environment Laboratory at the Ministry of Primary Industries in New Zealand identified the black ants as Technomyrmex species.

In a statement, the Ministry says the white‑footed black ants will only be a problem if fruit trees, crops and vegetables are planted very close to buildings or homes.

It says that they are attracted to the honeydew produced on the leaves by sucking insects.

The Ministry of Agriculture says they stated that to control these white footed black ants people need to carry out cultural and chemical control measures.

The Ministry says that some cultural control measures include the burning of stems, branches and fruits and also destroy ant nests with boiling water.