Carriage of fire ant in luggage from China Industrial product delivered by sea on December 5, 18:17
Last month, a dead carcass was found in a package delivered to a house in Fuchu, Tokyo. Luggage was imported from China, and the Ministry of the Environment asked importers to take measures to prevent fire ants from entering.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, on the 20th of last month, two dead ants were found in the package that arrived at the Fuchu City residence in Tokyo. There was no queen ant.
Luggage is an industrial product manufactured in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China, packed in China, purchased by a Japanese importer and delivered by sea.
The Ministry of the Environment thinks that there are no ants that have escaped to the surrounding area due to the packaging situation.
Hiari has been confirmed in 15 prefectures so far, but it can be found in the last two cases following the case found in a house in Yao City, Osaka last May.
The Ministry of the Environment called on importers to take measures to prevent fire ants from entering.
500 in Tokyo last month
Last month, more than 500 new fire ants were found at Aomi Pier in Koto-ku, Tokyo.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, Hiari was found in the container yard of Qinghai Wharf. On the 28th, an operator who had conducted an emergency survey of Hiari confirmed that there were over 500 cracks in the cracks in the ground pavement.
There were no queen ants on this day, but there were more than 50 queen ants with feathers that could breed from September to last month at another location on the Aomi Pier, about 300m away.
The Ministry of the Environment believes that the size of the fire ants found this time was different, so they were not born from the queen ants, but were newly brought in overseas containers.
The Ministry of the Environment decides to disinfect poisoned food twice a month until the end of March next year.
What is Hiari?
The fire ants are native to South America, the whole is reddish brown, and the abdomen is dark red.
The size is about 2mm to 6mm. The feature is that it is a little reddish compared to the conventional ants, but it is difficult for experts to judge whether they are fire ants or not.
On top of that, it is said that there are two points that determine the possibility of fire ants.
The first is to make a dome-shaped nest, “Arizuka”, with soil and sand.
In Japan, there are no ants that make a mound near people living in places such as sandboxes in parks and vacant lots in residential areas, which means that it will be a point of judgment as to whether they are fire ants.
The second point of judgment is that the movement is quick. Hiari researchers point out that they move faster and more actively than traditional ants. If you find an ant with these characteristics, you should keep it away.
If you find a fire ant
According to experts, commercial insecticides are also effective against fire ants.
However, fire ants are very aggressive, especially when the nest is stimulated, and many ants may attack all at once.
For this reason, it is better not to approach unless a fire ant has entered the house and is unavoidable.
Even in such a case, you should not touch it with bare hands.
If I am bitten by a fire ant
There are individual differences in symptoms after being bitten by fire ants.
If it is light, it can be a little painful and itchy.
However, if a general symptom called `` anaphylactic shock '' occurs, such as feeling suffocating, being voiced, causing severe palpitation or dizziness, there is a risk that it may be life-threatening. It is necessary to have a medical examination.
According to experts, people with bee venom allergies, such as those who have had an allergic reaction from a bee sting, should be especially careful.
When Kobe is stabbed by a fire ant, keep it calm for about 20 to 30 minutes and pay attention to your physical condition. When the situation suddenly changes, we are calling for a medical institution to be called immediately by requesting an ambulance.