Fire Anthology

Christy Draper

Anthracitic ants anticipate antipathy.
A true Antediluvian antagonist, their anthoid antrum a scourge.
Using an antiquated anthelmintic,
I attempt to attack their mound;
Their antennae ever attuned,
I swear I heard their faint war anthem!
Their sudden purge resembling an anthemion.
But this is not anthropophagy,
I anthropomorphize.
Their antics are merely an antevert.
Antibiosis in the form of a nasty sting;
Not unlike an Antiar dart.
And now I am in need of an antidote or antivenin:
An antalgic antiseptic or antibiotic
To neutralize this anticly growing antefix.
And not to make an anticlimactic mountain out of an anthill:

This is war.

The Science

This poem is inspired by the infiltration of invasive species such as the red imported fire ant,  Solenopsis invicta, which is the most common species of fire ant in North America.  Originally from South America, the red imported fire ant was thought to have arrived in the United States through the port of Mobile, Alabama around the 1930s as a stowaway on a ship. 

While they are most prevalent in the lower southern United States, there have been confirmed populations as far north as North Carolina and as far west as California. When their large mound is disturbed, the ants will swarm to defend their nest, resulting in a painful sting that forms a large white pustule within twelve to twenty-four hours. An insidious characteristic of a fire ant attack is that numerous ants will swarm on a victim before being detected, until one ant elicits a pheromone signal for all the ants to sting at the same time. 

Known as a major pest, along with property damage, fire ants disturb and kill livestock and crops in agricultural settings, as well as pets and children in urban settings. As voracious foragers, they will go after most any food source, but prefer protein-based material such as dead or live animals, insects, and worms. However, they can also feed on the roots and young growth of plants available in an area. Fire ants negatively impact the diversity of other ants by outcompeting them for territory and food sources, but a secondary negative impact occurs with any ground nesting species such as birds and small rodents. The ants will attack the nest and use the babies for food, resulting in a negative impact on the survival rate of such ground habitat species. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that fire ants cause over $6 billion US dollars in damages annually. They also have a handy pest tracker for anyone wanting to learn more about invasive species in a specific area.

The Poet

Christy Draper is a biologist, chemist, and green roof professional. She is an avid photographer and poet who uses a combination of those art forms to communicate science, environmental issues, and injustice. More of her work can be seen on her personal blog: Dancing Echoes.

Next poem: Haptics in the Museum by Bryan Joel Mariano