Treatment continues of red fire ant infestation in Montecito

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. – They’re not everyone’s favorite creatures on earth.

“Pesty and fast and could hurt me," said visitor Blaire Wilson at Lotusland in Montecito.

The Santa Barbara County Agricultural Commissioner's Office is taking the lead to treat the unusual infestation of 'red imported fire ants' on a private property in Montecito.

They concluded the infestation is not as big as originally anticipated.

The concern over these non-native insects remains in the community.

"You transplant it to a new location … it multiplies without the creatures that keep its population and in its native habitat,' said sustainability manager Chris Ziliotto of Lotusland.

According to the commissioner's office, the infestation is currently believed to have originated from Riverside County.

“It’s a lot more aggressive. it’s dangerous to fieldworkers gardeners kids that are playing," said Ziliotto.

A licensed pest control business is doing the treatment with oversight from the commissioner's office.

Staff at lotusland were notified about the infestation.

“Very cautious about what comes on the property here at Lotusland because it really is a hub of biodiversity with more than 35,000 plants," said director of communications and marketing Katherine Colin of Lotusland.

Managers at Lotusland will continue monitoring all materials that enter the property.

“it’s our duty to protect and preserve the biodiversity," said Colin.

There are more than 200 species of fire ants in the world, but they're hard to tell apart based on color or size.

Some are more hazardous than others.

“My hope is that this becomes something that we look back on and use as a reason to really push for plant inspections … the last thing anybody wants i think is for this to become a introduced you know here to stay introduced pest," said Ziliotto.

The Santa Barbara County Agricultural Commissioner's Office is continuing its response to an active infestation of Red Imported Fire Ants, Solenopsis invicta, centralized in the Montecito area.

According to the Commissioner's Office, the infestation is currently believed to have originated from the importation of nursery stock shipped from Riverside County in September of 2023.

Treatments are being conducted in the impacted areas by a licensed pest control business using University of California Cooperative Extension guidelines and with oversight from the Commissioner's Office staff shared the County Agricultural Commissioner's Office.

Venom from the ants can cause painful pustules on the skin and can be dangerous, even fatal, for sensitive groups or those with an allergy detailed the Agricultural Commissioner's Office.

The Agricultural Commissioner's Office explained that there are native fire ants and argentine ants that are not as hazardous, but it is difficult to determine the difference based on color or size.