Ants are everywhere. It is impossible to live on this planet and not come across ants during your life. Thankfully, most of them are relatively harmless to humans. All of them can bite humans and some of them are able to spray noxious chemicals to fend off predators, but most of these actions go completely unnoticed by humans and don’t pose any kind of threat to our health or comfort. However, of the thousands of species of ants that inhabit the earth, three categories of ants exist in the United States that do have the ability to sting humans, causing a good bit of pain, in addition to posing a threat to our health. These three categories include fire ants, oak ants, and harvester ants, all of which can be found throughout Louisiana. If one of these ants stings you, you will definitely take notice.

Like bees and wasps, ants are part of the Hymenoptera order. What sets bees, wasps, and stinging ants apart is a special adaptation they have on their abdomen that gives them the ability to sting another creature when they feel threatened. Stinging ants, like wasps, can use their stinger on you multiple times. When ants perceive a possible threat to their colony, they will swarm said threat and begin their assault by biting the enemy. After they have successfully latched on to their foe, the ant will then sting them repeatedly, pivoting their abdomen to sting in a circular pattern around the bite.

The site of the stings will initially swell up, and are accompanied by pain and a burning sensation. These sites can develop into pus-filled blisters that may take weeks to go away. These pustules should not be popped, as they are sterile due to the antimicrobial nature of the venom, and tampering with them could lead to infection. While it is not as common for a person to be allergic to ant stings, it is possible, and an allergic reaction will generally become increasingly severe with every subsequent sting a person experiences in the future. This can even lead to swelling of the face or lips and difficulty breathing.

Have you ever been stung by an ant? Did you have an allergic reaction?