New Zealand claims victory over destructive Argentine ants

A New Zealand success in eradicating one of the world's most invasive and destructive insect pests is being shared with other countries, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry said Thursday.

The Department of Conservation (DOC) had wiped out the highly aggressive Argentine ant, which could form massive super colonies, on the island of Tiritiri Matangi, in the North Island's Hauraki Gulf, said Barry.

"Tiritiri Matangi is one of the few places in the world where Argentine ants have been successfully eradicated," Barry said in a statement.

"They may be small, but these ants are one of the most damaging of all invasive pest species. The World Conservation Union lists them as one of the 100 worst eco-invaders on Earth."

First discovered on Tiritiri Matangi in 2001, they could kill native insects, lizards and even birds, and compete with them for food resources.

Once established, they were extremely difficult to remove, but the DOC had developed an innovative bait and detection methods that were integral to the decade-long effort to clear the ants from Tiritiri Matangi.

For three years no Argentine ants had been found on the island, and DOC was now able to formally declare them eradicated.

Lessons learned from the Tiritiri Matangi eradication have already been applied on islands overseas, said Barry.

Biosecurity measures were in place to minimize the risk of reinvasion and surveillance systems to detect new ant incursions had been established. Endit