Posted on 06/19/2022 4:16:52 PM PDT by Scarlett156
(audio)
Scientists say they've figured out at least part of North America's invasive, imported fire ant problem by turning a virus that kills them into a weapon.
A group of researchers from Tennessee, Florida and North Carolina universities said in their new study, published in the print edition of the Journal of Invertebrate Pathology this month, that they successfully reduced wild Florida populations of imported fire ants. The ants reduce nearby biodiversity, so the team used a virus called Solenopsis invicta virus 3 to kill them.
"Laboratory tests have shown that Solenopsis invicta virus 3 may be an effective natural control agent against its host, the red imported fire ant," the so-authors wrote.
The Washington Post says both the imported red and black fire ants are native to South America and were introduced in the 1930s.
(Excerpt) Read more at futurism.com ...
I don’t trust them.
So they found a good use for the clot shot?
Dreamworld, Isaac Asimov, 1955...
A long poking stick, some gasoline, and a match. some assembly required.
What could go wrong????
I take it that he wrote a book about killing an Aunt via virus, titled Dreamworld? 🙂
Back when the fire ants first moved across the Texas Gulf coast, my dad and I would wait until the fire ants were mostly up in the top of the mound and each take a shovel full and dump it on the other mound. That resulted in a mother of all wars that usually killed the mounds.
More recently we had many mounds in our hay field until we treated it with molasses which all but eliminated them.
As far as a virus, our record of bringing in one thing to control something else has been less than stellar.
The fire ants pretty well exterminate the native ants and that which feeds on them. Horned Lizards, red ants, and quail immediately pop to mind.
Dr. Harold Medford: We may be witnesses to a Biblical prophecy come true - ‘And there shall be destruction and darkness come upon creation, and the beasts shall reign over the earth.’.
You got “wrote” and “Dreamworld” correct.
The short story is in his Opus 100 collection.
Two years ago I had fire ants invade my home . But you are correct , they weren’t after sugar .
If you want “Them”, this is how you get “Them”.
Yeah, they do. It would be nice if the other ants could come back though.
I don’t like it. It’s like playing with matches.
Yeah, let’s see what happens when we try to manipulate an entire species population. I mean, look at Australia...
Usa a magnifying glass.
Add full grown cattle, Human Babies, Elderly and Dogs.
We need to get them to acquire the taste for demonratcommieblmantifaterrorscumfeminazipedophilegoatrapers.
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