Experts say discovery of fire ants in Murray Darling Basin should be ‘ringing alarm bells’

‘We are prioritising eradication activities in Oakey’, says a National Fire Ant Eradication Program spokesperson. Photograph: Jono Searle/AAP

Fire ants have reached the Murray Darling Basin, with experts warning the latest detection of the rafting super pest should be “ringing alarm bells” at the highest levels of government.

The extremely invasive insect was discovered west of the Great Dividing Range in Oakey, Queensland, 120km from Brisbane, on Tuesday. A team from the National Fire Ant Eradication Program was at the site by Wednesday morning, with emergency measures put in place by Thursday.

According to the program’s fire ant map, the ants were found on an army aviation base about 4km from Oakey Creek, a tributary of the Condamine River. The program has not confirmed the number of nests at the site and is conducting genetic testing on the population.

Those results will reveal whether the ants are linked to the ongoing and extensive south-east Queensland outbreak or had newly arrived in the country, possibly by plane.

“We are prioritising eradication activities in Oakey,” a program spokesperson said. “Our dedicated teams were on the ground over the weekend and the intensive surveillance and treatment will continue this week.”

Red imported fire ants were first detected in Queensland in 2001 and can kill people, native animals and livestock as well as damage infrastructure and ecosystems and have infested more than 700,000 hectares in the Brisbane area.

They have the ability to form rafts, joining together to float and survive flood waters. Farmers have long feared that a fire ant incursion to the Murray Darling catchment area could, because of the pest’s river rafting capabilities, speed up their spread.

The chair of NSW Farmers’ biosecurity committee, Ian McColl, said the new detection “is the first time that we’re aware that it has been found in areas where it has the potential to get into the Murray Darling river system”.

“That takes the whole level of risk to another level.”

As well Queensland, the detection had the potential to affect New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, he said.

About 40% of Australia’s farms are located in the Murray Darling Basin. A 2021 report found fire ants could cut agricultural output by up to 40%.

“In the last six months, we’re finding outbreaks on a regular basis. Where is the next outbreak? If that outbreak is anywhere near the top reaches of the Murray Darling River system, is it controllable then, or is it beyond control? That’s really the question,” McColl said.

Advocacy manager for the Invasive Species Council, Reece Pianta, said fire ants were unlikely to be able to raft from the Oakey site, but that the detection was significant.

“This new detection outside the fire ant eradication zone and within the Murray Darling Basin catchment should mean alarm bells are ringing loudly in the prime minister’s office,” he said.

“It is a significant infestation … The question it raises is how many undetected fire ants nests are out there,” he said.

Both the council and the program are urging residents in Queensland and NSW to look for and report fire ants.

“Working together is key to eradicating fire ants from Australia for good, once and for all,” the program spokesperson said.

The detection was confirmed the day before the Senate’s Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee released its report into red imported fire ants in Australia.

A month after the conclusion of three days of public hearings, the committee made 10 recommendations, including a funding review, public awareness campaign, the establishment of a cooperative research centre and an independent review of the current response to fire ants.

It warned Australia could face annual losses of $2bn if fire ants were to become widespread.

“The report makes it clear that the government needs to do more to repair the damage done by past fire ant failures,” said Pianta.

“The government that lets fire ants spread will be judged harshly by future Australians.”