Source: AgriLife Today
South Korea has asked Texas A&M University for help in stopping an alien pest new to their country, but all too familiar to most Texans, officials said.
“The red imported fire ant has invaded Asia over the last few years, but the South Korean invasion is brand new,” said Dr. David Ragsdale, Texas A&M entomology department head at College Station.
Ragsdale said entomologists at Texas A&M are world authorities in the management and control of this serious pest, giving South Korea’s inquiry and ongoing collaborative work with Australia as examples.
“Apparently, red imported fire ants have been reported from Busan, a port city in the southern part of Korea,” Song said. “However, there are not many fire ant experts in Korea, so they reached out to me for help in identifying one or more experts at Texas A&M.
“Entomologists from Korea plan to visit our department in September to, among other things, establish a network of experts in the areas of ecology, physiology, integrated pest management and genomics in fire ants to help them deal with the pest proactively. They also want to establish an ongoing international collaboration with our department.”
Learn more about fire ant control: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/solutions/fire-ants/
—
Through the application of science-based knowledge, AgriLife Extension creates high-quality, relevant continuing education that encourages lasting and effective change.