One Queensland zone and three rules for electric ants
Queensland’s Biosecurity Regulation establishes an electric ant biosecurity zone and sets three rules for it, a shorter list than the same regulation sets for fire ants.
Lines are drawn from the places each source names; the regulator’s map is the boundary.
What the regulation settles, and what it does not
The electric ant is Wasmannia auropunctata.
The regulation sets the zone and then forbids moving an electric ant carrier out of a place in it, unless the place is a lesser restrictions area.
The zone is in place in six council areas in Far North Queensland: Cairns Regional, Cassowary Coast Regional, the Douglas Shire, Mareeba Shire, Tablelands Regional and Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire.
The ant is in Cairns and the areas around it, and its first detection was in Cairns in 2006. It is one of the world’s most invasive pests.
Source: Queensland legislation, Biosecurity Regulation 2016; Business Queensland, electric ant.
The three rules
- 1A person must not move an electric ant carrier from a place in the zone that is not a lesser restrictions area.
- 2A person must not move a live electric ant from a place in the zone to another place, within or outside the zone, unless it is moved under a biosecurity authorisation.
- 3A person must not keep a live electric ant, in their possession or under their control, outside the zone or in a lesser restrictions area, unless it is kept under a biosecurity authorisation.
The one stated exception is a waste facility listed on the department’s website as accepting electric ant carriers.
Suspected exotic ants can be reported to the Exotic Plant Pest Hotline on 1800 084 881.
Outbreak, the national biosecurity site, asks for reports of any unusual ants, even when you are not sure.
Source: Queensland legislation, Biosecurity Regulation 2016; Outbreak, report a pest; Outbreak, red imported fire ant.
Beside the fire ant rules
The same regulation handles the red imported fire ant in much more detail. The two sets, side by side:
| The question | Fire ants | Electric ants |
|---|---|---|
| Moving a live ant | Must not be moved from a place in a zone to anywhere, within or outside the zone, without a biosecurity authorisation | Must not be moved from a place in the zone to another place, within or outside the zone, without a biosecurity authorisation |
| Keeping a live ant | Must not be kept outside the fire ant biosecurity zones without a biosecurity authorisation | Must not be kept outside the zone, or in a lesser restrictions area, without a biosecurity authorisation |
| Moving a carrier | Must not be moved from a place in a zone except in the cases section 69 lists, such as directly to a waste facility in the same zone, or after less than 24 hours at the place | Must not be moved from a place in the zone that is not a lesser restrictions area, except to a listed waste facility |
| Stored carriers | Relevant carriers, including animal manure and mining or quarrying by-products, must be disturbed at least every 21 days while kept, and 24 hours before moving, with a written record | None in the regulation |
| Hay in a zone | Baling, the last two rakings and removal from the paddock all run on 24 hour clocks inside a zone | None in the regulation |
| Soil | Must not be moved out of a zone, with one exception: from a place in zone 1 to a place in zone 2, or under authorisation | No separate soil rule in the regulation |
| Turf and potted plants | The covering rule can be sidestepped when the carrier is treated with an appropriate chemical product, with a written record | None in the regulation |
| Who to tell | In Queensland, 132 ANT (13 22 68) within 24 hours of sighting | The national Exotic Plant Pest Hotline, 1800 084 881, for exotic ants |
The fire ant provisions establish two zones, fire ant biosecurity zone 1 and zone 2, drawn on the fire ant biosecurity zone map. The electric ant rules work from one zone, with a lesser restrictions area inside it.
Source: Queensland legislation, Biosecurity Regulation 2016; Outbreak, red imported fire ant; Outbreak, report a pest.
Who may be paid to treat a home
Queensland Health requires anyone carrying out pest control activities for a fee to be licensed, checked through its seeking pest management services guide.
Source: Queensland Health, seeking pest management services.