Fortuitous Biological Suppression of the Boll Weevil 1 by the Red Imported Fire Ant 23

Abstract

The efficacy of the red imported fire ant ( Solenopsis invicta Buren) as a predator of larval stages of the boll weevil ( Anthonomus grandis Boheman) was evaluated in 2 areas of Texas. In the Trinity River area the ants consumed up to 85% of the weevils with a weekly avg of 66%. Ants never consumed more than 37% of the weevils in the Brazos-Navasota River area and averaged 22% in Aug. The fire ant exhibits characteristics that may make it a valuable predator of cotton insect pests. It tends to disperse fairly uniformly across cotton fields at high densities and tends to increase in abundance as the growing season progresses.