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Although some pretty terrifying creatures stalk the desolate plains of the Aussie Outback, few match the horror and potential ferocity of the Yellow Crazy Ant [Photo] and Argentine ant [Photo]. These ferocious, relentless bugs are every bit as deadly and fearful as the infamous soldier ants of South America.

Accidentally transported to Australia from their native habitats, the ants normally create small colonies that can be managed by humans that happen to dwell in the proximity of the aggressive creatures.

Entomologists and zoologists rank the Argentine ants as one of the 100 worst invaders on Earth. Yet the Yellow Crazy Ants are magnitudes worse: flesh-eating predators that spray acid in their victim's eyes before busily devouring them.

Super ants creating super colonies

Authorities are scrambling to prevent a possible catastrophe to Australian biodiversity as the invading ants have changed their normal habits and created massive super colonies. Elissa Suhr of the Monash University in Melbourne has stated that the move from Argentina to Australia has limited their species' natural generic diversity and driven them to work more closely together creating a massive super colony that threatens everything around them-including humans.

"In Argentina, their native homeland, ant colonies span tens of metres, are genetically diverse and highly aggressive towards one another," explained Suhr during a BBC interview.

"So population numbers never explode and they are no threat to other plants and animals.

"When they arrived in Australia, in 1939, a change in their structure occurred, changing their behavior so that they are not aggressive towards one another. This has resulted in the colonies becoming one super colony."

Super colony phenomenon spreading across globe

Super colonies of ants have long been known in the South American rain forests and the savannahs of Africa. Recently, however, ant super colonies have been cropping up in regions of Europe and Asia.

During 2010, Yellow Crazy Ants invaded the Johnston Atoll. Susan White, a wildlife biologist and the Project Leader for the Pacific Reefs National Wildlife Refuge Complex that oversees the Johnston Atoll and other nearby islands is quoted as saying the ants are "wreaking havoc, spraying acid into the eyes of birds, and forcing them to abandon nests. Nothing can withstand them."

White is currently leading the effort to eradicate the dangerous atoll invaders.

Argentine ant invasion spreading

Although far from being among the largest of the ants, Argentine ants are one of the most deadly. Despite their relatively miniscule size-they average only a tenth of an inch in length-they are extremely well-organized, act like an efficient army, and their genetic similarity makes them an army of single-minded clones. These traits permit them to establish and grow super colonies that can swarm over a countryside and into urban areas, taking control of large swaths of land covering as much as hundreds of square miles.

The Argentine ant super colonies and the Yellow Crazy Ant super colonies endanger all life they meet. The colonies have been known to double in size in mere months. They feed on indigenous life-including large animals-and will eat anything they can swarm and overpower including birds, reptiles, and even coastal creatures like crabs.

Argentine ants have been found as far away as California. Authorities there have been fighting a losing battle in an attempt to destroy the invading ants before the insects kill friendly native ants and other California native species.

Recently, the Argentine ants have invaded the city of Melbourne and if the super colony reaches sufficient numbers small pets and even human babies could be at risk from the relentless, aggressive creatures.

Suhr and other scientists have launched emergency research into other known Australian colonies found in the cities of Perth and Adelaide. She worries that if those ants have the same genetic make up as the ones in Melbourne a super colony extending thousands of miles could emerge across greater southern Australia.

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Although some pretty terrifying creatures stalk the desolate plains of the Aussie Outback, few match the horror and potential ferocity of the Yellow Crazy Ant [Photo] and Argentine ant [Photo]. These ferocious, relentless bugs are every bit as deadly and fearful as the infamous soldier ants of South America.

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Even if you're not afraid of snakes, you probably wouldn't like finding one in your toilet. Yet that's exactly what happened a few days ago in Khon Kaen, Thailand. The video above, which was released earlier this week, shows rescuers pulling a snake out of the toilet into which it had slithered.

Brad Shaffer, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of California, Los Angeles, wrote in an email that he's "pretty sure it is an oriental rat snake," which is "a large, common, completely harmless snake that is wide-ranging across a lot of southern Asia."

Although rare, the phenomenon of snakes wriggling into toilets is well documented. Snakes have popped up in toilets around the world, including in Australia, South Africa, and the United States. According to Shaffer, they probably get in by climbing into the toilet bowl, rather than crawling through the piping. (Video: " If You're Scared of Snakes, Don't Watch This ")

This isn't even the first time a toilet snake in Thailand made international news this year. In May, a python crawled into a man's squat toilet bowl in Chachoengsao Province and bit his penis. Local rescue officer Danupol Tapo told CNN at the time that he had seen snakes in toilets "many times," and though he'd seen cases where snakes had attacked legs and butts, he'd never before encountered one that had bitten someone's genitals. (Unfortunately, an Israeli man suffered the same type of injury in 2013.)

Once it's in there, removing a snake from a toilet can be unpleasant. Geoff Jacobs, who runs a snake-catching business in Brisbane, Australia, told the BBC that he gets four or five calls a year to remove green tree snakes, common tree snakes, carpet pythons, or other types of serpents from toilets-and that the process is very gross.

"It's the worst job," he said. "You get a toilet bowl that's been there 30 or 40 years-we see the bit that gets cleaned but the rest of it doesn't. When you go to pull the thing out of there, it's not fun." ( Watch a clip from Snake City's upcoming episode, "Deadliest Catch.")

So why do snakes even get into people's toilets in the first place?

According to Lin Schwarzkopf, a professor at James Cook University in Townsville, Australia, they're probably just looking for a little sustenance, and maybe some peace and quiet.

"Snakes drink water, like other vertebrates, and need water to survive. They are probably looking for water," she wrote in an email. "Also, snakes like to avoid noise, lights, and disturbance, and rooms with toilets in them tend to be small and dark with good hiding places."

And, since rats and frogs "also need water and like quiet, dark locations," Schwarzkopf noted, "snakes may go into toilets looking for prey." (Read " Yes, Rats Can Swim up Your Toilet. And It Gets Worse Than That.")

Shaffer, however, thinks that most snakes found in toilets probably crawled in there because they were scared. If a snake accidentally enters a person's house, it might try to find a dark place, like a toilet, to hide.

"I'm virtually positive that [the snake in the Thailand video] was just trying to hide," he says. "It was probably scared to death being in someone's house."

If you see a snake in your toilet, you should stay calm, close the toilet lid and the bathroom door, and call whatever organization in your area handles animal removal and release.

"It's easy to panic with snakes ... but I think it's also important to realize that snake populations around the world are really ... in trouble," Shaffer says. "Hopefully, people don't use these very rare instances of snakes getting in houses or getting in the toilet as a reason to be more fearful or to kill snakes."

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Watch a Live Snake Get Pulled out of a Toilet

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Even if you're not afraid of snakes, you probably wouldn't like finding one in your toilet. Yet that's exactly what happened a few days ago in Khon Kaen, Thailand. The video above, which was released earlier this week, shows rescuers pulling a snake out of the toilet into which it had slithered.

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A new study predicts that wild pigs could soon be a problem in every state.

It's estimated that wild pigs cause more than $1.5 billion in damages and control costs in the U.S. each year.

A new study predicts that invasive wild pigs could soon be a major problem from coast to coast.

The study published in The Journal of Applied Ecology this week found the United States' wild pig population is steadily growing and predicts that the animals could inhabit most counties in the continental U.S. within three to five decades. Researchers developed a model for the study that examined the pigs' expansion from 1982-2012. Looking at where the pigs started and where they are now, the study's authors hoped to make accurate predictions as to where they may go next.

Wild boars are most concentrated in the southern half of the country where more than 6 million pigs are spread across 35 states. The study noted that climate change could play a large role in their next move.

"The spread of invasive wild pigs was primarily associated with expansion into areas with similar environmental characteristics as their previous range, with the exception of spreading into colder regions," the study's authors wrote. "We identified that climate change may assist spread into northern regions by generating milder winters with less snow."
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The pigs are the descendants of the domestic swine that were first brought to the United States by Spanish explorers in 1539. Long after their arrival, hunters introduced wild Eurasian boars into some areas where they went on to breed extensively with domestic pigs. The result is a modern invasive species that are known to carry or transmit over 30 diseases and 37 parasites, according to the USDA.

In 2014, the United States Congress appropriated $20 million to the United States Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Inspection Service to create a damage management program for the increasingly problematic pigs. While non-lethal measures have proven somewhat useful in limiting the damage caused by the pigs, officials suggest that hunting and eliminating the pigs is the most successful means of stopping population growth.
MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Swimming Pigs

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Invasive Wild Pigs Are Spreading Across The United States

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A new study predicts that wild pigs could soon be a problem in every state. It's estimated that wild pigs cause more than $1.5 billion in damages and control costs in the U.S. each year. A new study predicts that invasive wild pigs could soon be a major problem from coast to coast.

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Killer Bees - Africanized Honey Bees - DesertUSA

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Africanized bees acquired the name killer bees because they will viciously attack people and animals. Learn how to protect yourself.

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Nearly 100,000 killer bees invaded a home near Houston, Texas, in June of 2013. The bees developed their colony in the home that was vacant for two years.

KHOU-tv reported on June 6 that the killer bees swarmed the neighbors' dog, killing the family pet. The bees were removed and taken away by a trained beekeeper.

The invasion could be the result of migration, researchers suspect. Jerry Hayes, the "honeybee guy" at Monsanto, said that the killer bees, which are Africanized bees, migrate where there are warm temperatures. Research also suggests that the bees' behavior changes with weather and fluctuations in barometric pressure.

Hayes describes them as "super-bees" which travel up to 300 miles per year to inhabit tropical to sub-tropical climates.

Professor of Entomology at Penn State University and Director of the PSU Center of Pollinator Research, Dr. Christina Grozinger, said that temperature plays a key role in where the bees migrate. Africanized bees have been found within the last five years as far as the Southeast coast.

Africanized bees originated in Africa and were brought over by researchers to Latin America. Researchers believed that since the climates were similar the bees would be able to survive and produce honey. Instead, they continued to migrate farther north due to the subtropicallike temperatures that occupy much of Arizona and Texas during the summer months.
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Africanized bees are unable to survive in cold climates. Once the temperature begins to change, they migrate south or die off.

Hayes said that the bees can predict when winter is coming. Unlike Africanized bees, European bees, who originated from Europe, have the ability to survive during the winter.

"European honeybees act as a thermostat, expand during summer and when it gets cold they contract over winter to maintain their temperature of 93 degrees F," he said.

Africanized bees did not adapt to survive in cold temperatures; therefore, they will die in the winter months.

Hayes also said that the bees start to behave differently when there is a change in barometric pressure. Before it rains, they retreat to their hive and can become more aggressive. The bees are attuned to vibrations and may come back to the hive more defensive than when they left.

Due to the amount of predators Africanized bees faced in their native environment, they are naturally more aggressive than European honeybees.
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Researchers are now questioning whether humid air causes bees to be more defensive. Dr. Eric Mussen, extension apiculturist in the entomology department at the University of California-Davis, said that this question has not yet been answered.

Africanized bees are valued for their honey production and their ability to pollinate flowers. The bees, which were brought over to Brazil for economic gain, have made the country one of the leading producers of honey, according to Grozinger.

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Killer Bee Invasion in US Linked to Warmer Temperatures

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Nearly 100,000 killer bees invaded a home near Houston, Texas, in June of 2013. The bees developed their colony in the home that was vacant for two years. KHOU-tv reported on June 6 that the killer bees swarmed the neighbors' dog, killing the family pet.

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Invasive Snakeheads Found Above Great Falls
Spreading to the Upper Potomac via the C&O Canal
Credible reports of snakehead sightings and results from a Maryland Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service survey indicate that the non-native snakehead species has spread into the C&O Canal and thereby the Upper Potomac River.

Last fall, anglers reported catching two northern snakeheads between mile marker 19 and 22 in the C&O Canal. Following the reports, biologists from the agencies surveyed about eight miles of the canal between Great Falls and Violettes Lock, and found a seven-inch juvenile snakehead. Subsequently, a park visitor photographed an adult northern snakehead guarding a school of fry in the same section of canal.

These discoveries validate concerns that this non-native species could gain a foothold in the non-tidal Potomac River above Great Falls, a site where it had never before been reported.

First discovered in the tidal Potomac River watershed in 2002, the northern snakehead fish is now firmly established in the Patuxent River, and has spread to other fresh and low-salinity tidal waters in Maryland and Virginia.

There are many sources of water exchange between the canal and the Potomac, particularly during flood events, and it is nearly certain that the species has now gained access to the Upper Potomac River.

"Eradication is not possible once these fish become established in an open river system such as the Potomac," said DNR inland fisheries biologist John Mullican. "We expect that these fish will eventually become a permanent part of the Upper Potomac fish community. Confronting snakeheads in the canal system is the best way to mitigate their emigration into the Upper Potomac."

DNR, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service are developing programs to monitor and control the abundance of snakeheads in the canal system.

Fishing pressure in the tidal Potomac River has been effective in reducing the growth of the snakehead population. DNR asks anglers to enjoy pursuing, catching and removing Maryland's three most troublesome invasive fish-snakeheads, blue catfish and flathead catfish by any legal method. There are no seasonal, size or creel limits for these three invasive species in Maryland.

DNR also asks anglers to report any snakeheads caught from the C&O Canal or Potomac River upstream of Great Falls to fishingreports.dnr@maryland.gov, and to please include a photo and detailed description of the capture location including GPS coordinates, if possible.

It is a violation of Maryland and Virginia laws as well as the federal Lacy Act to possess, import, or transport live northern snakeheads, punishable by fines up to $250,000 and five years in prison.

To raise awareness and help control the population spread of invasive fish, DNR added an Invasive Species Award category to its annual Maryland Fishing Challenge. Qualifying fish must be caught using legal recreational fishing methods, including rod and reel, bow and arrow, trotline, jugs, and spear. The fish must also be killed.

There are three ways to qualify:

1. Angler Award: Anglers who catch a fish meeting the minimum award sizes: snakehead-30"; flathead catfish-34"; blue catfish-40"; and take their catch to an Angler Award Center (participating tackle shops) for confirmation and Maryland Fishing Challenge entry ticket.

2. State Record: Anglers who set a new Maryland state record will automatically be entered. Call 443-569-1381 to report a potential record. Click here for full rules and procedures.

3. Maryland Angler's Log: Anglers who post their catch to the Maryland Anglers Log will receive automatic entry. Participants can simply email a photo and report to fishingreports.dnr@maryland.gov.

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Invasive Snakeheads Found Above Great Falls

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Spreading to the Upper Potomac via the C&O Canal Credible reports of snakehead sightings and results from a Maryland Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service survey indicate that the non-native snakehead species has spread into the C&O Canal and thereby the Upper Potomac River.