Fire ant defense: insects take field, delay game

[Are_grits_groceries]

Referee called off game after finding field overrun with fire ants

Just when you think you have seen everything in sports, along comes a high school football game that is postponed because of fire ants. No kidding. It happened Friday night at Hunter-Kinard-Tyler High.

Minutes before kickoff between Hunter-Kinard-Tyler and Calhoun County, referee Steve Hook concluded the field was unplayable. His customary pregame inspection of the grounds found 15 to 20 large, active fire-ant piles.

So Hook called the two coaches — Calhoun County’s Walt Wilson and H-K-T’s Jermaine Derricott — together. Hook informed the two that the safety of players, coaches, officials, even the chain gang, would be at risk if the game were played.
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Read more: http://www.thestate.com/2011/09/27/1987677/teams-fired-up-about-game-delay.html#ixzz1ZBfVUKgL

There were some idiots who were mad and wanted the game played. I would rather play on a bed of hot coals.
They are nasty and dangerous. I can just imagine how many stings a person would have after just one play.
:scared:

[gratuitous]

1. I remember back in college

I was sitting on the board at the radio station for a broadcast of the baseball game. We're talking a 10-watt FM station - nobody was listening. It was a warm afternoon in late spring, and I was having trouble staying awake. The two guys calling the game were prattling on about something I didn't care about. Suddenly, in the background I heard some yelling and some banging around. The guys interrupted themselves and shouted something, then the mikes went silent for several seconds. There was a funny noise, then more silence. I was about to switch to something else, stick in a pre-recorded PSA or something, when they came back to explain that a swarm of bees had just come down the left field line, circled behind the plate, and proceeded off down the right field line. The shout before they skedaddled was "BEES!" The swarm didn't disturb anything on the field, but the broadcast position in the bleachers behind home plate was directly in the path.

It must have been something to see. As something to listen to, it was pretty interesting.

[itsrobert]

2. I wish the military did the same

There is an area on Lackland AFB that is infested with fire ants and this is the area we practiced our low crawl and other field maneuvers. Got bit a bunch.

[appleannie1]

3. Nothing quite like a bunch of disturbed and angry fire ants. And they are small and cunning enough

to crawl under the uniforms and pads before attacking.

[rurallib]

4. Can they get rid of the ants or is the field toast?

I sort of remember reading that fire ants are not easily removed or destroyed.

[1monster]

9. There are anti fire ant products that work, bu they take at least 24 hours to

kill a nest. And if one queen survives, it will just move elsewhere in the area and begin again.

There can be up to 500 or more queens per mound. That's what makes it so hard to get rid of them. When they are bad, I bait my whole yard with fire ant killer. It helps a lot. For a while.

[Are_grits_groceries]

10. They should find another place to play in case.

If they moved in and built mounds, they are there to stay unless major measures are taken. If they were lining the field and working on it, those little bastids must have moved in quickly if they weren't noticed before. They can do that so there is something about that field they like. ONE mound is bad enough. Sounds like they have overtaken the whole neighborhood, and they probably have elected an FHA.

[Zorra]

11. Andro kills them and the queen, too. Fire ants were put on this earth for the

specific purpose of biting me. They hurt, and they crawl onto my feet and bite me for no reason.

They are my sworn enemies.

I hate them, and I know how get rid of them.

[ZombieHorde]

5. Figures. Just when football gets interesting, they stop the game.

(I'm making a joke)

[Blue_Tires]

6. kill them with fire (seriously, it works)

[greytdemocrat]

7. Nuke em from orbit...

[KansDem]

8. "All right you mugs, see? Nyaa...We're in this game too, see? Nyaa...

"We've been giving this field the 'double O' and we're not leaving!...See?"
--Little Fireant

[KamaAina]

12. I move that H-K-T change its team name to the Fire Ants

and the stadium could be The Mound.

[Gman]

13. “I don’t see how you can keep ants off the field,”

Duh... Amdro? It works very well.

[rurallib]

14. Thank goddess our area is north of where they can survive

but climate change will probably change that.