RED IMPORTED FIRE ANTS (Solenopsis invicta) INFESTING AMERICAN ALLIGATOR (Alligator mississippiensis) NESTS

The red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta) is known for its impacts on Florida wildlife; hatchlings of ground-nesting herpetofauna are particularly vulnerable. This study examined factors correlated with fire ant infestation of American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) nests. We were particularly interested in determining whether having floating nests afforded any protection from these ants. We surveyed ants on 24 alligator nests at Orange Lake located in Alachua County, Florida, using tuna baits left for ~2h. We found S. invicta was the most commonly observed species at nests, present at 12 of the 24 nests. There was no significant difference in the proportion of nests with S. invicta present for floating nests (8 of 14) versus land-based nests (4 of 10). This may have been influenced by the limited sample size of the study, something which future studies should aim to address.