I am not so sure fire ants are to blame. I live in Dallas as well and hatch out box turtles every summer in my back yard where fire ants live. I have never witnessed fire ants in a box turtle or any reptile nest for that matter. I almost wish the fire ants were to blame as that would at the very least give you an honest starting point to begin dealing with the problem. I think there is something else going on. 15 years ago I used to be able to go out and find box turtles on almost every field trip. 25 years ago I would find them in the street while I was walking to school. This year I have bean out probably 25 times and not seen a single one. Last year I saw a single three toed the entire year. The year before that? Nothing. Much of it might be the fact that so many were harvested for the pet trade in the past years and also I want to blame urban sprawl and habitat destruction but I also have no proof of that. Every time I fly in a plane I cant help but look down at the earth and wonder to myself “how can wildlife support itself down there” You do not notice how cut up and manicured our environment is until you are up above it looking down. You can even go to Google earth maps and look at what I am referring to. You have to look very hard to finds even a few acres that have not been altered for pasture, crops, or human development.

my two cents
Allen Sheehan

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