Growing spread of crazy ants in Texas is no laughing matter

FWST ^ | BILL HANNA 

[Proud_texan]

"I kill colony after colony of fire ants"

I'm in central Tx. and this is the first year in longer than I can remember that I haven't found a single fire ant bed in my yard. When I mention it to other people they say the same.

And also for the first time in more years than I can remember I've seen horned toads in my yard. In fact four sightings.

It's been 20 years for sure and maybe 40 since I'd seen a single one.

[yarddog]

Same here. Also have tent caterpillars in all my pecan trees and most of them are too high to spray. Just giving up and letting them go.

[LongElegantLegs]

That’s interesting!
When I get bit by even one fire ant, my entire foot/hand/whatever swells up. I just wear long pants, socks, and boots, expecially during the summer.

[SiVisPacemParaBellum]

Wow. Liberals have ants named after them.

[Deaf Smith]

"tape a copper penny over the bite"

You would look a bit strange if you were doctoring fire ant bites. They like to swarm on the target and all bite & sting at the same time on the count of three. Meaning you would have a hundred or more pennies on that limb/body part.

[Dysart]

Arlington, Tx here. It really did not occur to me or my Vet that ant bites could be a culprit in my dogs inflammatory rashes until you mentioned it here. Should have though, looking back and knowing I'm always battling them and having never seen fleas...I'm going to bounce this possibility off her.

Anyway, as for the behaviorally-challenged ants per the article, I don't know of anyone personally this far north who has encountered them--yet. Your account of the bites, though, with the rash is consistent with my dogs' reaction. Maybe a field study is in order this wkend.

[Dysart]

I just wear long pants

Aha! I knew it! They don't call you LongElegantLegs for nothin.

[Joe 6-pack]

I have a friend in Midlothian who’s tied in with a few vets in the area. I’m going to shoot her a note and see if she’s heard of anything like this up that way. Let you know if I find out anything interesting....

[Arrowhead1952]

I lost all my ping lists, so let me know if you want on or off this TX ping list.

[MrB]

Dimes work 10 times better.

[spectre]

When I stepped into a mound of fire ants, they went up my pant legs like lightening. I had to jump into the Lake to stop them from biting.

For weeks the only relief I got was taking a shower as hot as I could stand it about 4 times a day. I hate those ants.

sw

[Ditter]

A few years ago I had an infestation of very big, very busy ants and I got rid of them fairly easily. They were living in and around cracks in my drive way in the front of the house.

[BJClinton]

I thought everybody had a crazy aunt.

[txhurl]

And oddly, rattlesnakes are making a comeback.

[Steve Van Doorn]

I am not positive but they sound like army ants but army ants usually have longer legs. Here is a list of army ants:
http://www.armyants.org/armyants/indexfiles/speciesindex.html

[Red Badger]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3146869/posts