# I, for one, welcome our iridomyrmex humilis overlords. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 13, 2004, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680 "2004-08-13T13:08:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/1 "2004-08-13T13:08:03Z")
While I’ve been waiting for a chance to use that one, this is more than a little bit creepy. [They’ve made peace with each other. Who’s left… but us?](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3561352.stm) [Already they’re known to overwhelm and kill hatchlings at chicken farms.](http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1281119,00.html) Have mercy on us, O wise and benevolent masters. As a tasy treat, I offer you the President of my insignificant nation and ask that you take pity on me and assign me the task of watching the beaches of my land to ensure their safety. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/2 "2004-08-13T13:33:23Z")
Yeah, we have those types in California. They always fought with the larger red ants. Our block is basically a gigantic ant colony, made up of the suckers. They’re quite the pain in the ass - very determined to get in your house and eat crumbs and such. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/3 "2004-08-13T16:16:33Z")
Jeez, one more thing to worry about. I can only hope that the _terra_ of New Jersey will eventually prove to be inhospitable to those mutant ant colonies – given the dioxins, chromium dumps, PCBs, benzines, assorted petro-chemical residues, agricultural fertilizer runoff, and unexploded WWII ordnance still laying about. Either that, or, should those ants ever establish a foothold here, that the mutagenic conditions would re-mutate the ants back to their original, less-threatening prediliction for internecine warfare. ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/4 "2004-08-13T18:29:51Z")
Let me see if I have this straight; a few ants got imported to Austrailia, and had a grand old time, but because of the small original pool, they are fairly closely related, so they acan form supercolonies. So, how about importing some more ants from South America to form some unrelated colonies to compete with them? Or would they just be overwhelmed by the supercolonies? ---
**Author:** ![Kilt-wearin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@Kilt-wearin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilt-wearin_man)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/5 "2004-08-13T19:36:59Z")
I say you take off and nuke the site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/6 "2004-08-13T19:44:50Z")
> [@Happy Scrappy Hero Pup](#): > > They’ve made peace with each other. Who’s left… but us? Interestingly enough, this is exactly the plot of the underrated (but coldly intellectual and hard-to-get-into) 1974 SF movie _Phase IV._ ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/7 "2004-08-13T19:56:24Z")
> [@Kilt-wearin' man](#): > > I say you take off and nuke the site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure. Sweet. My co-workers are wondering why I’m laughing! ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2004, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/8 "2004-08-13T20:41:32Z")
> [@The Scrivener](#): > > I can only hope that the _terra_ of New Jersey will eventually prove to be inhospitable to those mutant ant colonies – given the dioxins, chromium dumps, PCBs, benzines, assorted petro-chemical residues, agricultural fertilizer runoff, and unexploded WWII ordnance still laying about. Og bless the Garden State. 🙂 We can always hope the ants are homophobic. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/9 "2004-08-14T03:09:02Z")
Then there is [this](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1932509.stm) super-duper ant colony that stretchs from Italy to Spain (6000 km). ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/10 "2004-08-14T07:27:07Z")
It seems they are progenitors of an anti-war gene. Perhaps that’s worthy of study? ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/11 "2004-08-14T07:30:31Z")
Or at least they don’t kill their own kind. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/12 "2004-08-14T07:54:49Z")
Is it a really bad omen that the “Godzilla” theme song started playing on my MP3 player right when I opened this thread? :eek: **Kilt wearin’ man** —F\*ckin _‘A!’_ ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/13 "2004-08-14T10:19:41Z")
> [@The Scrivener](#): > > I can only hope that the _terra_ of New Jersey will eventually prove to be inhospitable to those mutant ant colonies – given the dioxins, chromium dumps, PCBs, benzines, assorted petro-chemical residues, agricultural fertilizer runoff, and unexploded WWII ordnance still laying about. New Jersey is inhospitable to all forms of life. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/14 "2004-08-14T10:27:03Z")
> [@Podkayne](#): > > Let me see if I have this straight; a few ants got imported to Austrailia, and had a grand old time, but because of the small original pool, they are fairly closely related, so they acan form supercolonies. > > So, how about importing some more ants from South America to form some unrelated colonies to compete with them? Or would they just be overwhelmed by the supercolonies? Bad idea. Wasn’t it Guam that was overrun with imported rats and tried to control them by importing rat killing snakes, and now they have to figure out how to control the overpopulation of snakes? I guess they could import mongooses, but then they’d have to import eagles or something to control the mongoose population and then when the eagles get out of hand… ah geez. It’s like World War 3 in the animal kingdom. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/15 "2004-08-14T11:25:46Z")
> [@AveDementia](#): > > Bad idea. Wasn’t it Guam that was overrun with imported rats and tried to control them by importing rat killing snakes, and now they have to figure out how to control the overpopulation of snakes? [Was that Guam, or Springfield?](http://www.snpp.com/episodes/5F22) ---
**Author:** ![Idlewild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@Idlewild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idlewild)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2004, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-iridomyrmex-humilis-overlords/259680/16 "2004-08-14T13:51:45Z")
Yeah, ah, Australia already has experience with the whole import-a-predator thing. Didn’t work out too well. There’s now a pest population of Cane Toads because they were brought in to get rid of scarab beetles in the ‘30s. Oops. I’m guessing that may put a damper on any plans to import scores of aardvarks, or whatever is the ants’ natural predator back home.