![]() Additionally, fire ants are attracted to the electricity and have been known to destroy anything from AC units and water well equipment to outdoor lighting, creating a fire hazard. Feeding on almost any plant or animal material, fire ants also feed on other insects. Attacks by fire ants are coordinated as hundreds of workers sting at the same time. These ants build mounds, and when a fire ant mound is disrupted, workers make their way to the surface to attack the intruder. One fire ant can sting and bite its victim repeatedly. However, these reactions typically occur in those who have been stung by an ant or a yellow jacket once before as its venom is known to cross-react with the Solenopsis venom in vitro.Fire ants get their name from their extremely painful sting and bite. They are sterile and are the result of the venom alkaloids lasting for about one week. A large, local reaction, typically over 10cm in diameter, may occur which has a pustule on top of a painful inflamed and swollen area. A second lesion that can result is a sterile pustule that develops within the first 24 hours and is filled with yellow fluid. The stings are very painful and cause intense itching. The most common reaction is a wheal and flare, which is a lesion that has resembles a hive but also is surrounded by erythema. The ants will swarm and repeatedly sting the lower body. However, the imported fire ant can attack with little warning. Disrupting the nest causes a large number of ants to swarm and attack. The most common scenario is one where the patient is outside, in the yard or the woods, and is standing on or near an ant nest. These symptoms include flushing, generalized urticaria, angioedema, laryngeal edema, bronchospasm, or loss of consciousness.įire ant stings also are capable of causing serum sickness, nephrotic syndrome, seizures, worsening of pre-existing cardiopulmonary disease, and anaphylaxis. Anaphylaxis usually occurs in those sensitized by a previous sting. The local reactions of the fire ant sting can cause anaphylaxis, which is a response to the aqueous protein solution. They are very painful and pruritic, lasting 24 to 72 hours. A pustule forms as a result of the venom alkaloids, but it is not allergenic.Īnother response is the large local reaction, which is characterized by a reaction larger than 10 cm in diameter and associated with localized erythema and edema. Vesicles develop within four hours and by 24 hours these develop into sterile pustules. ![]() When the sensation subsides after a few minutes, a dermal flare and wheal occur and papules form within two hours. The immediate reaction to the venom is an intense burning sensation which explains the common name of the ants. The reactions range from immediate localized wheal and flare responses to large, local or systemic reactions which can include anaphylaxis. The protein portion contains the allergens. It is the alkaloid part of the venom that causes a sterile pustule at the sting site and has cytotoxic and hemolytic properties. The venom is 95% water-insoluble alkaloid, with the remaining 5% being an aqueous protein solution. ![]() The venom of the fire ants is used to immobilize or kill prey for food yet has also demonstrated insecticidal, bactericidal, and fungicidal activity. It rotates its body which results in a circular pattern resulting in pain and itching at the site. As it stings, it does so at an average of 7-8 stings. It arches its body and then injects venom through the stinger located on the abdomen. When the ant stings, it does so with its mandible, which locks onto its prey. Over the next decade, the fire and Solenopsis invicta is expected to spread to California and towards the Pacific coast nearing the Canadian border.įire ants do not need to be provoked to attack, and their venom is capable of causing a painful local reaction and, in some instances, result in life-threatening anaphylaxis. The black fire ant is seen only in northern Alabama, northern Mississippi, and southern Tennessee. Worldwide locations include the Caribbean islands, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, the British and United States Virgin Islands, Antigua, and Trinidad, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, and China. Red fire ants are predominately seen in 14 states: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. They were introduced into the United States at Mobile, Alabama about 40 years ago. The first is a red, imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta and the second is the black imported fire ant, Solenopsis richteri. There are two types of fire ants which belong to the Solenopsis species. Fire ants tend to be an aggressive insect that will sting causing very painful reactions.
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