Velayuthampati (Tamil Nadu): The people living in the hilly villages near Dindigul, adjacent to Karandamalai near Natham, have been facing a strange problem for the past few days. The cattle owned by the farmers have lost their sight, dead chickens and even snakes are found dead and for all this, ants are held responsible. Singharam, a villager told ETV Bharat that they have encountered strange types of ants. Although these ants are not fatal to humans they can devastate livestock.
Singharam also claimed that ants can eat the eyes of large animals like Gaurs. Rasu, a resident of Karantamalai, expressed concern that ants were biting and eating the hooves of the goats and these ants will consume the goats eventually. The villagers have raised the complaint to the forest department and many villagers have migrated after the forest department neglected the plea.
According to Ecologist and wildlife researcher, assistant professor Ko. Ashoka Chakraborty, these ants are identified as 'yellow crazy ants and these ants are found in continents of Asia and Australia. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed this ant as one of the world's top 100 most dangerous invasive species due to its bite. These ants can eat all types of insects and these ants like to eat carcasses in particular.
"These are the biggest type of ants with a length of 7mm and these ants secrete an acid called formic which is causing permanent blindness in animals and these ants can be controlled by insecticides. Most of the ants are found in the Karandamalai region of the Dindigul district," he added.
