{"id":507699,"date":"2026-03-06T18:09:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T18:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/507699\/"},"modified":"2026-03-06T18:09:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T18:09:12","slug":"invasive-fire-ant-nest-found-in-queenslands-world-heritage-listed-rainforest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/507699\/","title":{"rendered":"Invasive fire ant nest found in Queensland\u2019s World Heritage-listed rainforest"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A fire ant nest has been spotted at one of Australia\u2019s most iconic World Heritage rainforests, sparking concerns about the potential threat posed to the region\u2019s ecology<\/a> by one of the world\u2019s worst invasive species.<\/p>\n

The nest was found and destroyed at a forest clearing at the Lamington National Park on the Queensland Gold Coast<\/a>, Australia\u2019s Invasive Species Council said in a statement on Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cFire ants<\/a> are one of the worst invasive threats to Australia\u2019s wildlife and a failure to eradicate them in south-east Queensland will see them spread across most of the country,\u201d the council\u2019s director Reece Pianta said.<\/p>\n

The ancient rainforest is world-renowned for its unique biodiversity and deep ecological history, which stretches back to the prehistoric continent of Gondwanaland.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo find a nest inside one of the world\u2019s most ancient and beautiful rainforests is alarming. These places should be beyond the reach of invasive species,\u201d Mr Pianta said.<\/p>\n

Since fire ants are not usually found in rainforests, the latest find highlights the adaptability of the species and why every part of Australia is at risk of infestation, researchers say.<\/p>\n

\"FireFire ant S. invicta (Jesse Rorabaugh via Eurekalert)<\/p>\n

If the ants spread across Australia, they could have a $2bn per year impact on the economy, researchers say.<\/p>\n

They could devastate wildlife, cut agricultural output by up to 40 per cent and may also cause over one hundred thousand extra medical appointments each year.<\/p>\n

Originally from South America, they were first reported in Australia in 2001, thought to have come in freight from the US.<\/p>\n

The ants can survive harsh conditions and spread over long distances.<\/p>\n

Previous observations reveal they can form rafts during flood events, stowaway in freight or soil or spread by Queen ant flights of around 5km per year, and up to 30km in favourable conditions.<\/p>\n

A 2021 government study suggests that up to $300m annually would be required over the next 10 years to curb Australia\u2019s fire ant invasion or the continent would face at least a $2bn cost per year from the ants forever.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe programme\u2019s rapid response meant the nest was found and destroyed before it could spread…The park is protected because the system responded fast,\u201d the director said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBureaucratic funding delays to the next phase of fire ant eradication cannot be allowed to impair the program\u2019s ability to respond quickly, or we will see more national treasures like this impacted,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":507700,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[192,79],"class_list":["post-507699","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507699","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=507699"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507699\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/507700"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=507699"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=507699"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=507699"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}