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04-15-14 10:41 AM - Post#167619
An Army of Red Ants are Coming! - Part II
What's a Fire Ant?
There are many different types of fire ants, and they are found all throughout the southeastern and southwestern United States. The most common and aggressive kind is the red imported fire ant, which is reddish-brown and measures about 1/8-inch long (about half the size of a pencil eraser).
Red imported fire ants live in colonies that first nest in the ground, and then create a mound of dirt over the nest. These mounds can grow up to 18 inches high and over 2 feet wide! Red imported fire ants' nests can be found on lawns, in parks, on playgrounds, in fields, and in pastures. Some red imported fire ants create nests in walls of buildings.
The bodies of mature fire ants, like the bodies of all typical mature insects, are divided into three sections: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen, with three pairs of legs and a pair of antennae. Fire ants of those species invasive in the United States can be distinguished from other ants locally present, by their copper brown head and body with a darker abdomen. The worker ants are blackish to reddish, and their size varies from 2 mm to 6 mm (0.12 in to 0.24 in). In an established nest these different sizes of ants all are present at the same time.
What a Sting Looks and Feels Like
A person who gets stung by a fire ant will feel a sharp pain and burning. A person who steps on a fire ant mound will get a lot of stings at once because the ants have been disturbed where they all live together. Each sting will turn into an itchy white blister over the next day.
If you disturb a nest of fire ants you’re likely to get stung many times. That’s because each ant can sting multiple times. People can have different reactions to fire ant stings, from itchy bites to a swollen foot or arm to a life-threatening allergic reaction.
Learn more at WebMD
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