Below you will find a range expansion model for red imported
fire ants, developed by researchers at University of
Arkansas. The model is based upon the ants' ability to
produce alates, the sexual forms that leave the nest to mate
and produce new colonies. Temperature and availability of
water both affect the activity and biology of red imported
fire ants and are limiting factors for their spread.
These maps do not reflect the actual distribution of the red
imported fire ant--rather, they represent a theoritical
distribution of the ants based upon meteorological factors
that affect their activity and survival.
