FIRE ANTS

Of all the creatures that can disrupt living in Florida, the Fire Ant is at the top of my list. We avoid alligators, rattle snakes, pythons, and other things because we usually see them in time. Fire ants are different. When a fire ant mound is disturbed, they emerge aggressively, crawling up vertical surfaces. Then, as though issuing a command they bit all at once. You’re standing there enjoying your surroundings when you feel a bite. Look down, you may see nothing. When you look harder you see many tiny spots clinging to you.

Fire Ants were accidentally introduced from South America arriving in Alabama. They spread aggressively, remaining primarily in the Southeast because they don’t live in cold climates. A fire ant is 1/8” to ¼” long. The mounds we see around Tangerine Woods are about 10” round and 3” high and appears to be a pile of loose soil, inactive with no apparent life, seldom are the ants visible. Until disturbed.

This video was shot in Tangerine Woods: (Link unavailable)

Unlike other ants, which bite and spray acid, fire ants bite only to get a grip and then sting from the abdomen injecting a toxic alkaloid venom called solenopsin. For humans, this is a painful sting, a sensation like what one feels when burned by fire (hence the name). The venom is mainly composed of oily alkaloids mixed with a small number of toxic proteins. An allergic reaction can cause a life-threatening reaction requiring emergency treatment using adrenaline using an EpiPen. The stings swell into an itchy bump then into white pustules the next day.

It is important to resist the urge to scratch due to infection risk. They will go away if left alone. Just writing this makes me itch.

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