2006 Annual Report 1.What major problem or issue is being resolved and how are you resolving it (summarize project aims and objectives)? How serious is the problem? Why does it matter? The overall goal of this project is sustainable management of the imported fire ant on agricultural, industrial, wildlife, urban and recreational areas through development of new surveillance and control technologies. Proactive regional programs will be implemented to suppress imported fire ant populations and to end the spread of infestations. In the framework of these programs we will (1) develop remote sensing technology for detecting and quantifying imported fire ant mounds; (2) identify and evaluate candidate biological control agents for efficacy against imported fire ants; (3) improve fire ant bait acceptance, weather resistance, specificity and storage stability; and (4) develop improved production, storage, and delivery techniques for biological control agents. Imported fire ants damage mowing and harvesting equipment, interfere with recreational activities, damage electrical equipment, alter native arthropod communities, occasionally kill livestock, and sting humans, sometimes causing death in sensitive individuals. Efforts to halt the spread of the ants relying solely on chemical control have been unsuccessful. Currently, the geographic range of imported fire ants covers over 300 million acres in fifteen states and Puerto Rico. The range of imported fire ants in the United States is expected to increase unless we develop proactive, integrated regional management programs. Fulfilling the objectives of this project will benefit producers of commodities that are subject to Federal quarantine regulations, other farmers, scientists, and the public. 2.List by year the currently approved milestones (indicators of research progress) 1. Determine efficacy of multispectral airborne imagery for fire ant mound detection. 2. Develop image enhancement algorithms to maximize mound detection. 3. Describe seasonal changes in fire ant mound characteristics and temporal variation in mound temperature. (2006) 4. Test thermal IR and range finding remote sensing techniques for mound detection. (2006, 2007) 5. Develop automated feature extraction techniques for quantifying mounds in images. (2006, 2007, 2008) 6. Use remote sensing to build risk assessment models for targeted insecticide application. (2008) 7. Identify potential biological control agents (pathogens) in fire ant populations in the southeastern U.S. (2005) 8. Determine intermediate host(s) for Thelohania fire ant disease. (2006, 2007) 9. Evaluate pathogens as biological control agents in regional integrated management programs. (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) 10. Develop bioassay methods for assessing repellency of substances to fire ants. 11. Develop polymer-coating techniques for baits. 12. Develop multiple-phased fire ant bait. (2006, 2007, 2008) 13. Establish relationship between head space profile and bait quality. (2006, 2007) 14. Identify repellent/attractant fractions from fire ants and fire ant mounds. (2006, 2007) 15. Test effects of fatty acid profile and antioxidants on bait shelf life and acceptance. (2006) 16. Conduct preference tests based on physical properties of bait; finalize multiple phased bait formulation. 17. Test new bait formulations on regional integrated management program sites. (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) 18. Identify new, more efficient ways of increasing lab production of phorid flies. (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) 19. Establish phorid flies in several states in the southeastern U.S. (2007) 20. Investigate diapause in phorid flies and potential for cold storage of life stages. 21. Investigate new means of establishing phorid flies, determine impact of the flies at release sites. (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) 4a.List the single most significant research accomplishment during FY 2006. Developed new automated object recognition (AOR) techniques for automatically detecting imported fire ants in airborne multispectral imagery. As part of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Automated Decisions, LLC, funded by the Small Business Innovative Research program, we achieved a detection rate for fire ant mounds of 79% with a false alarm rate of as little as 4% using newly-developed object classification techniques written for use in ENVI, one of the leading image analysis programs. Extensive new code was written and implemented to expand ENVI’s capabilities for object classification as well as visualization of image related data. The AOR techniques are currently being refined for use across varying landscapes. 4b.List other significant research accomplishment(s), if any. Discovered potentially useful antioxidants to improve fire ant bait shelf life. Most fire ant baits in the market are oil-based. They are not stable due to the rancidification of the soybean oil. Two phenolic antioxidants were identified from fire ants and one synthetic antioxidant was found to be an attractant to fire ants. Ant-derived and nonrepellent antioxidants can be used to improve the stability of the fire ant baits without scarifying their acceptance by fire ants. 4c.List significant activities that support special target populations. Release sites for phorid flies in the subordinate project "Establish phorid flies for biological control of fire ants in Oklahoma" meet the "small farms" criteria. 4d.Progress report. Phorid flies that parasitize fire ants are being released in an effort to provide long-term, natural suppression of the ants. Following successful establishment of phorid flies in southern Tennessee for fire ant control in 2002, several observations in the field have confirmed establishment and spread of the flies. An additional release was made at an ornamental nursery in 2003. Fly populations from these releases have merged with expanding populations from previous releases in Tennessee, effectively covering the infested area in the state. Researchers are continuing to monitor fire ant and native ant populations to assess the impact of the flies. This accomplishment has the potential to benefit nursery growers and the public by providing natural, long-term suppression of imported fire ants. Phorid flies were released in northwestern Alabama in Summer 2002 for biological control of imported fire ants. Flies have been recovered at the release site in 2003 and heavy phorid density was noted in 2004, indicating successful establishment, population increase, and overwintering. An additional release along the Natchez Trace Parkway in northwestern Alabama was successful, with flies being recovered in and around the release site. Currently, phorid flies from these releases have spread throughout most of northern Alabama and have coalesced with other expanding populations in Tennessee; thus the flies have the potential to impact black and hybrid fire ants throughout their range in Alabama. Monitoring of fire ant and native ant populations is continuing in an effort to document phorid fly impacts. This accomplishment has the potential to benefit the public by providing natural, long-term suppression of imported fire ants. Phorid flies were released in southern Oklahoma for biological control of imported fire ants in late Fall 2003. To date, field-reared flies have been recovered at the release site and up to 6 miles away, an increase of several miles over last year. Data indicate successful establishment and overwintering. This accomplishment will help provide long-term sustainable reduction in fire ant populations. Thermal infrared images have been collected of more than 70 imported fire ant mounds at 1 hour intervals during daylight hours. The effects of time of day and various physical mound characteristics on surface temperature have been modeled. Repeating patterns in the location of the thermal center of fire ant mounds have been elucidated and modeled. New routines in IDL programming language have been written for temperature scaling of thermal infrared images and analysis of anisotropy. These accomplishments will allow construction of season- and site-specific algorithms to automatically detect fire ant mounds in large thermal images, and will benefit researchers and regulatory personnel who wish to detect and quantify fire ant mounds over large areas. Initial tests of a thermal infrared digital video camera (mounted on spray plane and Cessna 172) indicated that the small-format camera used does not deliver the spatial resolution necessary to discern fire ant mounds from their surroundings at the speed and altitude tested. Funds have been obligated for additional test flights at lower speed and altitude. Preliminary work from a bucket truck (approx. 60 ft. AGL) indicated that mounds can be identified in thermal imagery of sufficient resolution. This research will benefit researchers and regulatory personnel who wish to detect and quantify fire ant mounds over large areas. 5.Describe the major accomplishments to date and their predicted or actual impact. 1. Improved rearing methods for Pseudacteon curvatus, the little decapitating fly. An innovative rearing system was developed to provide more effective, less expensive environmental control for phorid fly production. This research will benefit universities and State and/or Federal agencies interested in rearing phorid flies. 2. Established phorid flies as biological control agents against black and hybrid imported fire ants in a successful, multi-state release program. Establishment of phorid flies in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Oklahoma has the potential to provide self-sustaining biological control of imported fire ants. 3. Developed methods for fire ant mound detection using airborne digital imagery. This research will provide innovative ways to quantify imported fire ant mounds over large areas to assess efficacy of control efforts, detect infestations, and investigate landscape ecology of the ants. 4. Identified useful image enhancement operations for application to aerial multispectral imagery to enhance contrast between fire ant mounds and their surroundings. This will benefit researchers and regulatory personnel by increasing the accuracy of mound detection using relatively inexpensive airborne data. 5. Bioassay methods were developed for assessing repellency of substances to fire ants. This research will benefit researchers who are examining repellency of substances for potential commercial application against imported fire ants. 6. A new fire ant bait formulation was developed and is currently being considered for a U. S. Patent. The new formulation is water resistant and more palatable to fire ants than existing baits. This research has the potential to improve fire ant control methods for homeowners as well as farmers and other commercial entities. 6.What science and/or technologies have been transferred and to whom? When is the science and/or technology likely to become available to the end-user (industry, farmer, other scientists)? What are the constraints, if known, to the adoption and durability of the technology products? None. 7.List your most important publications in the popular press and presentations to organizations and articles written about your work. (NOTE: List your peer reviewed publications below). Research Team Tests Methods in Fighting Fire Ants. Tishomingo Capital-Democrat, Thursday, May 19, 2006. Review Publications Chen, J. 2005. Excretion of phosphoric acid by red imported fire ants, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenpotera: Formicidae). Environmental Entomology. pp. 1009-1012. Chen, J. 2005. Assessment of Repellency of Nine Phthalates Against Red Imported Fire Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Workers Using Ant Digging Behavior. Journal of Entomological Science. 40: 368-377. Vogt, J.T., Reed, J.T., Brown, R.L. Timing bait applications for control of solenopsis spp. fire ants.... International Journal of Pest Management. 51: 121-130. 2005. Vogt, J.T., and Coy, S.E. The imported fire ant mound in three dimensions. Imported Fire Ants Conference Proceedings. 2005. Chen, J., Allen, M. L. 2006. Significance of Digging Behavior to Mortality of Red Imported Fire Ant Workers, Solenopsis invicta Buren, in Fipronil Treated Sand. Journal of Economic Entomology. 99: 476-482. Chen, J. 2006. Digging behavior of Solenopsis invicta workers when exposed to contact insecticides. Journal of Economic Entomology. 99:634-640. Vogt, J.T., and Kozlovac, J.P. Suggested personal protective equipment and other considerations for handling large numbers of imported fire ants (Solenopsis spp.) in the laboratory and field. Applied Biosafety. 11: 88-97. 2006 Streett, D.A., Freeland, T.B., Vander Meer, R.K. 2006. Survey of imported fire ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) populations in Mississippi. Florida Entomologist. 89: 91-92. Thead, L.G., Streett, D.A. 2006. Duration of Pseudacteon curvatus Borgmeier (Diptera: Phoridae) pupal stage at reduced temperatures. Journal of Entomological Science. 41: 120-125. Wallet, B., Vogt, J.T. Graphical exploration of features to detect imported fire ant (Solenopsis spp., Hymenoptera: Formicidae) mounds in high resolution aerial imagery. Biennial Workshop on Aerial Photography, Videography, and High Resolution Digital Imagery for Resource Assessment Proceedings. Weslaco, TX, October 4-5, 2006. Vogt, J.T., Wallet, B. Daily fluctuations in imported fire ant (Solenopsis spp., Hymenoptera, Formicidae) mound surface temperature. Biennial Workshop on Aerial Photography, Videography, and High Resolution Digital Imagery for Resource Assessment Proceedings. Weslaco, TX, October 4-6, 2006. Vogt, J.T., Streett, D.A., Chen, J., Thead, L.G., Ward, K., Ward, R., Oliver, J.A. 2006. Regional integrated management of imported fire ants along the Natchez Trace Parkway. George Wright Society Conference Proceedings. Philadelphia, PA, March 14-17, 2006.