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Fast Facts | Control Methods | By the Numbers | Symptoms and Care

Q: Where did fire ants originate?
  A: Fire ants entered the United States in the late 1930s aboard cargo ships from tropical South America. The Cargo ships arrived in Mobile, Alabama, and fire ants immediately migrated throughout the United States.
Q: Which states battle fire ant infestation?
  A: Fire ants have been reported as far north as Delaware and as far west as California. They currently infest 15 of the nation's states including: Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, Nevada, Alabama, Louisiana, North and South Carolina, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Arizona. Fire ants thrive in warm weather and in sunlight; however, they quickly are adapting to colder climates, which means more states are facing infestation.
Q: How do fire ants spread?
  A: Ants travel long distances by hiding in soil, plants with roots, nursery stock, gravel, grass, sod, hay, wood, or soil-moving equipment transported by motor vehicles. They disperse locally during the mating process, floods, and mass movement of colonies.
Q: What do fire ants look like?
  A: Fire ants typically are ¼ inch long and are reddish brown to black in color. They have two pairs of wings, with shorter hind wings, elbowed antennae and a narrow "waist" between the abdomen and thorax. Their aggressive behavior and characteristic mound-shaped nests best distinguish fire ants. Colonies consist of the brood (eggs, larvae, and pupae) and several types of adults.
Q: Where do fire ants live?
  A: Fire ants infest lawns, schoolyards, athletic fields, golf courses, and parks. In these places, they pose not only a medical threat to people and animals; they detract from the aesthetic value of the landscape. Fire ants form colonies close to homes and other buildings and occasionally feed on vegetable plants in home gardens. The worst damage occurs during hot, dry weather. Like other ants, fire ants frequently infest electrical equipment. They chew on insulation and can cause short circuits or interfere with switching mechanisms. Fire ants also are known to invade compost piles and mulched flowerbeds seeking warmth and moisture. Fire ants are a nuisance, can interfere with outdoor activities, and harm wildlife.
Q : Where do fire ants build their mounds?
  A : Fire ants build mounds in any type of soil, but prefer open, sunny areas such as pastures, parks, lawns, meadows, and cultivated fields. Mounds are 10 to 24 inches in diameter and 18 inches high. They also may exceed six feet underground. Often mounds are found in rotting logs and around stumps and logs.
Q : How large is a fire ant colony?
  A : An average colony contains 250,000 workers, hundreds of reproductive males and reproductive females, and one queen. In addition to single-queen colonies, many have multiple queens, which increases the number of mounds per acre. Queen ants can live seven years or more, while worker ants live approximately five weeks. A newly mated queen can lay a dozen eggs. When they hatch seven to 10 days later, the queen feeds the larvae. A queen fed by worker ants can lay 800 eggs per day, which emerge as adults nine to 15 days later.
Q : Are fire ants harmful to humans?
  A : A fire ant's sting burns, blisters, and causes nausea, vomiting, disorientation, dizziness, asthma, and shock. In sensitive victims, the sting can cause anaphylactic shock or even death.
Q : How can I avoid being stung by fire ants?
  A : You need to be aware of your surroundings at all times to avoid everything from car accidents to rattlesnake bites. If fire ants do crawl onto the skin, they first bite with their mandibles, the piercing mouthpart, in order to anchor for the thrust of the sting. As soon as a pinching sensation is felt, quickly sweeping the ants off before they actually sting will help avoid most of the damage. If work must be done in proximity to fire ants, wear rubber boots and gloves powdered with talcum, which repels the insect.
Q : What should I do if I'm stung by a fire ant?
  A : If you are stung by a fire ant, cautiously watch for excessive swelling, itching or redness, or other symptoms like shortness of breath, thickening of the tongue, or sweating, indicating a systemic allergic reaction, which could be fatal. If these symptoms appear, seek medical attention immediately. Otherwise, treat stings like other insect bites by keeping them clean and intact to avoid getting secondary infections.

To find out how Over 'n Out!™ compares to other methods, to see interesting statistics on fire ants or find out what you should do if attacked, click the topics below.

Control Methods | By the Numbers | Symptoms and Care