SYDNEY, March 31 (Xinhua) -- A crucial program combating invasive yellow crazy ants near the Australian state of Queensland's Wet Tropics faces an uncertain future as federal funding is set to expire in mid-2026.

Despite being recognized as one of the most successful eradication efforts globally, recent discoveries of new infestations highlight the ongoing threat, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported on Monday.

The program, based in the Cairns region, costs 6 million Australian dollars (3.78 million U.S. dollars) annually, with funding split between the Queensland and federal governments.

While the state government has committed funding until 2028, no new federal allocation was announced in the latest budget last week.

Yellow crazy ants, listed among the world's top 100 worst invasive species, form vast super colonies, posing a severe threat to native wildlife, including the critically endangered Kuranda tree frog, conservationists said.

First detected in the Wet Tropics in 2001, these acid-spraying ants have devastated ecosystems, silencing rainforests by wiping out insect and small animal populations.

Reece Pianta of the Invasive Species Council warned that without a decade-long funding commitment, progress could be undone, according to the ABC. Enditem

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