Development of an effective hydrogel bait and an assessment of community‐wide management targeting the invasive white‐footed ant, Technomyrmex brunneus

Abstract BACKGROUND Ants are one of the most serious household pests. White‐footed ants in the genus Technomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are invasive species of increasing global importance as evidenced by recent range expansion, nuisance pest status in residential areas and control difficulties driven mainly by lack of effective bait products. The goal for the current study was to develop an effective hydrogel bait and community‐wide management program for controlling the invasive T. brunneus in a residential area of Hachijo Island, Japan. RESULTS In laboratory insecticide screening, hydrogel baits containing thiamethoxam achieved higher T. brunneus mortality than those containing dinotefuran, imidacloprid, boric acid or fipronil at the concentrations tested. Hydrogel baits containing 0.01% and 0.001% thiamethoxam resulted in ≥90% mortality within seven days. However, the horizontal transfer effect was not strong with either concentration. Field experiments confirmed that hydrogel baits containing 10% and 30% sugar are highly attractive to T. brunneus . The community‐wide treatment utilizing hydrogel bait containing 0.001% thiamethoxam and 30% sugar significantly suppressed T. brunneus . Town residents were given the opportunity to participate in the program by applying hydrogel baits around their homes, and a follow‐up survey revealed that the residents regarded hydrogel baits as easy to apply and highly attractive and effective against T. brunneus . CONCLUSION The hydrogel bait and management program developed in this study can be used to suppress T. brunneus . Furthermore, our results demonstrate that a large network of highly motivated and properly trained members of the public can be highly effective in managing invasive ant populations. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.