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Video length: 3 min
Sicily: the invasion of fire ants
Sicily: the invasion of fire ants
(France 2)
In Sicily, an ant settled while living mainly in South America or Australia. The fire ant has put European scientists on alert because it is one of the most invasive in the world and dangerous for biodiversity.
It measures only a few millimeters, but with its mandibles and stinger, the fire ant is one of the most aggressive and dangerous species in the world. Wherever it goes, it attacks crops, infrastructure and humans. These ants can cross rivers without drowning, and even oceans if they travel by boat. Originally from South America, the fire ant has already reached the United States, via Australia and China. Last summer, it appeared in Europe, on the east coast of Sicily.
Global warming favors their proliferation
An agronomist has made it his battle since he discovered them. He travels the roads of Sicily to document their presence. Everywhere they go, they call him. In a lady’s garden, ants killed most of the rose bushes, around twenty in total. They even attacked the electronic card of the entrance gate. For the moment, the phenomenon is concentrated on a strip of 20 kilometers along the coast, but global warming favors the proliferation of these ants. The latter are particularly worrying for agriculture in particular, Sicily’s main source of income.
