National emergency fire ant tour

This month we're bringing US fire ant expert Dr Robert Puckett to Australia as part of our national emergency fire ant tour (bit.ly/fire-ant-tour) and we need your help to get a good turnout in the five capital cities we are visiting. We'd also love to see you, your friends and colleagues at one of the events! We're a small organisation and need your help to promote our tour. We're calling this a national emergency tour because if Australia's state and federal governments don't pull together to eradicate fire ants from Queensland the ants will eventually spread to every state in the country.. Fire ants are a super pest – if we fail to eradicate them now they will exact a devastating toll on our environment, farming communities, lifestyle, health systems and infrastructure. They will cause human deaths, hospitalisations and animal extinctions. The projections sound extreme, but we're not exaggerating. More than 85 deaths have been recorded in the US alone from fire ant attacks and the environment has been irreversibly altered. We're holding forums in Brisbane: 20 March at 6.30pm, TLC Building, 16 Peel St Canberra: 21 March at 6.30pm, ANU Commons Room Sydney: 22 March at 6.30pm, University of Sydney Melbourne: 23 March at 6.30pm, Trades Hall, Carlton Perth: 24 March at 6.30pm, Citiplace Community Centre, City Railway Station Complex Can you help promote the event in your state? Here are some tools you can use: Put up our poster in your office or on a local bulletin board; https://invasives.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Fire-ant-tour-A4-poster.pdf Share our Facebook post; https://www.facebook.com/invasivespeciescouncil/photos/a.157345914275803.32591.125812604095801/1469073129769735/?type=3&theater Share our fire ant threat map on social media; https://www.facebook.com/invasivespeciescouncil/photos/a.157345914275803.32591.125812604095801/1492330470777334/?type=3&theater Share our Tweet; https://twitter.com/ISCAustralia/status/832039363575844868?cn=ZmF2b3JpdGU%3D&refsrc=email Share our event booking page: bit.ly/fire-ant-tour; If you need more information please don't hesitate to contact our Outreach Officer Reece Pianta on 0422 935 665 or email reecepianta@invasives.org.au. Reece would love to know how you can help us. We're a small environmental organisation but with the your help we believe we can get a large number of people to all five forums. PS Here's just five frightening fire ant facts, good reasons why we must pull together and eradicate fire ants. Please share them on social media when promoting our event! 1) Fire ants have greater ecological impacts than most ants because they reach extremely high densities. An assessment of their likely impact on 123 animals in southeast Queensland predicted population declines in about 45% of birds, 38% of mammals, 69% of reptiles and 95% of frogs. 2) Fire ants damage crops, rob beehives and kill newborn livestock. During dry times they dominate the margins of dams and livestock cannot reach water without being seriously stung. 3) Fire ants might be small, but when their nests are disturbed they rise up in their thousands to swarm and sting their intruder en masse. 4) Without the regular use of chemical baits, infested parks, gardens and homes become uninhabitable. 4) In the US, 30% to 60% of people in infested areas are stung each year. The stings are painful, hence their name ‘fire’ ants. The alkaloid venom causes pustules and, in some people, allergic reactions. It's estimated 3000 Australians will suffer anaphylactic reactions from fire ant attacks if the ants are not eradicated. For more information about the fire ant threat I'll see you at one of our national emergency tour presentations. Warm regards, Andrew Cox, CEO