Abstract
Vials containing founder queens of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, were placed under the soil surface at four locations in central Texas; two within the current range of S. invicta and two outside, to compare founder queen predation mortality and also to document ant predators of the queen. The screen mesh covering vial openings was sufficiently small to prevent queens from escaping but allowed predacious ants as well as other organisms to enter. Queen mortality was compared between treatments and controls and at four locations. Of the four locations studied during 1988, predation by ants had the most pronounced effect on queen survival within the range of S. invicta . Twelve species of ants that previously have not been recorded as predators of S. invicta founder queens were observed killing queens during this study. Also, diversity of the ant community was found to be less within the range of S. invicta than outside the range.
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