If left unchecked, a species of tiny ants could change the ecology of Santa Cruz Island, officials say.Commonly found on the mainland, the Argentine ant likely got to the island off the Ventura County coast accidentally in the 1960s. In the years since, they have spread to several locations, covering about 1,200 acres."We've known that the Argentine ants have been out there since the mid-1990s," said Kate Faulkner, the chief of resources management for the Channel Islands National Park.With the threat of them spreading further — hitchhiking on something carried to another location or being washed downstream — officials have proposed a project to eliminate them from the island."They will eliminate all other ants," Faulkner said of the tiny insect native to South America.Where Argentine ants are found, there's typically no native ants left, she said.