Well it has started up again; the invasive fire ant has continued to spread in the Lower Mainland, from the Vancouver airport runways to CP Rail burning soil on the Arbutus corridor and now South Delta. And the pest problem is no longer just the common European fire ant; the lesser-known species labelled the impressive fire ant is here to stay. We’re talking about two different types of fire ants in virtually every municipality. In the past seven years, the ants have been introduced to at least 25 locations in the Lower Mainland through the movement of landscaping materials, soil and potted plants. Fire ants are difficult to control or eradicate, even with pesticides and the impressive fire ant are just emerging as an invasive species here. It wasn’t until three years ago at the Vancouver International Airport’s wildlife program reported the “new to us” impressive fire ant. Airport officials were worried about an epidemic of collisions between small birds and planes on the runway during July and August, which forced them to close the runways. As it turned out, the birds where eating the winged queens. The impressive fire ants, which nested in the grasslands around the airport, were attracted to the end of the runway for their mating flights.