---
title: "What the sources say about the Red Imported Fire Ant | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "61 claims from the Red Imported Fire Ant profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/red-imported-fire-ant-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-imported-fire-ant/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Red Imported Fire Ant (*Solenopsis invicta*)

> 61 claims from the Red Imported Fire Ant profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Red Imported Fire Ant](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-imported-fire-ant/)

## Beach (2025). Solenopsis invicta. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Solenopsis_invicta/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| An ant a few millimetres long | Range length 2 to 7 mm (note: tagline) |
| Sunny, disturbed soil in South America | Ideally, their habitat is in an area of freshly disturbed or loosened soil with direct exposure to sunlight (note: stats.habitat) |
| native to South America | are native to the Neotropical region of South America, including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay (note: stats.habitat; body) |
| southern US | Red imported fire ants are established in southern North America, as far north as the southern border of Virginia and southward through the Carolinas and Georgia to Key West, Florida (note: stats.habitat) |
| China, Thailand, Australia | In southeast Asia, red imported fire ants can be found in the southeastern third of China, the temperate regions of South Korea, the southern tip of Japan, and the majority of Thailand. Finally, these ants have established colonies in Ipswich and Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. (note: stats.habitat; body (Queensland)) |
| Insects, other animal tissue, seeds, nectar and sugary sap | Appropriate food sources for fire ants include nectar, sugar, sap, some animal tissues, insect tissues, grains, seeds, and human processed foodstuffs. (note: stats.diet) |
| Not Evaluated | Red imported fire ants are not listed on the IUCN red list (note: stats.conservationStatus. The prefetch found no Red List assessment for Solenopsis invicta (GBIF has no category, no Crossref assessment DOI), so no IUCN reference is cited. Precedent llama.json.) |
| When floodwater or heavy rain hits, a fire ant colony moves quickly to the surface and the ants link their bodies together | In special cases of flooding or heavy rainfall, a mechanism is triggered wherein the colony rapidly moves to the surface to form a raft. |
| the queen and the brood sit in the middle of the raft, with older workers on the outer edge | The raft is formed out of workers latching on to each other in a three-dimensional lattice formation with the queen and brood in the center, and older workers on the outer edges. |
| When the raft reaches dry ground, several ants grip the surface and the colony begins to leave the raft | When the raft encounters a dry area, multiple ants latch on to the surface and evacuation of the mass begins. |
| The first ones a new queen raises are usually about 2 mm long | In younger colonies, the initial brood of workers will have had only a minimum amount of nutrients to grow, so the initial set of workers are exceptionally small, and are called minims or nanitics. Minims are usually 2mm in length (note: body) |
| mature workers in a well-established nest may reach 6 mm | a fully mature worker (majors) in a well-established colony that may reach 6mm in length (note: body) |
| a worker clamps onto its victim with its jaws and uses that grip to push its stinger in | fire ants will latch onto the victim with their mandibles and utilize that leverage to drive the stinger into the victim |
| oily | they will inject an oily alkaloid solution |
| the sting feels like intense burning, then turns into an itch, and that is where the name comes from | The sensation of the sting has been described as an intense burning sensation which eventually transforms into a typical itching sensation. ... This sting is the reason for the namesake of fire ants. |
| An alarm signal made of pheromones, which are chemical messages, sends the whole colony swarming at a threat | the alert (or alarm) pheromonal signal that occurs when a colony is under threat. This signal has the immediate effect of mobilizing all ants within a colony to become suddenly more motile. This leads to a swarm response on the target |
| A mature, healthy colony can grow to 500,000 workers | In a mature and healthy colony, queens lay an average of 800 eggs per day, and the colony population can reach 500,000 workers |
| The queen lays an average of 800 eggs a day, and she can lay up to a thousand when the weather and food are right | queens lay an average of 800 eggs per day ... The queen can lay up to a thousand eggs a day when the colony is healthy, the weather is ideal, and food is plentiful. |
| Queens live an average of 6.5 years in the wild | Fire ant queens have an average longevity of 6.5 years (note: with ADW's lifespan block 'Status: wild 6.5 (high) years'. ADW updated 2025-10-01. Worker figures omitted: the page gives 91-375 days in one place and about 5 weeks in another.) |
| Foragers leave the nest through tunnels and find food mostly by smell, marking the way with pheromone trails | Foraging begins with tunnels that radiate from the main nest in many directions. ... Using primarily smell, the fire ants locate a food source. |
| marking the way with pheromone trails | mark their trek to and from food sources using pheromones secreted from various glands |
| They eat nectar, sugar, sap, insect and other animal tissue, and seeds | Appropriate food sources for fire ants include nectar, sugar, sap, some animal tissues, insect tissues, grains, seeds |
| they carry decaying food out to dump areas outside the nest | Food that has begun to decay, especially proteins and fats, will be thrown away by colonies in designated areas outside of the nest. |
| Flies made up the majority of the insects found in those waste piles | flies (58.5%) and isopods (21.7%) composed the majority of the insects found in waste piles |
| In winter the ants stay below the surface and stop foraging, and a colony may shrink by 75 percent | Fire ants brumate during the winter months, remaining below the surface and stopping foraging activities. Colony size may reduce by 75% during these periods |
| including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay | including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay |
| where they have been introduced they settle in places people disturb, such as pastures, parks, roadsides and golf courses | In the non-native ranges, fire ants establish themselves in areas of human-caused disturbances, such as pastures, parks, golf courses, ditches, along roadways |
| and now live across the Gulf states and the Carolinas | southward through the Carolinas and Georgia to Key West, Florida. The are found in every state bordering the Gulf of Mexico |
| They are also found in southeastern China and most of Thailand, with established colonies in Queensland, Australia | In southeast Asia, red imported fire ants can be found in the southeastern third of China, the temperate regions of South Korea, the southern tip of Japan, and the majority of Thailand. Finally, these ants have established colonies in Ipswich and Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. |
| The first small workers a young colony raises are about 2 mm long, while fully mature workers in an established colony can reach 6 mm | In younger colonies, the initial brood of workers will have had only a minimum amount of nutrients to grow, so the initial set of workers are exceptionally small, and are called minims or nanitics. Minims are usually 2mm in length, which is strongly contrasted by a fully mature worker (majors) in a well-established colony that may reach 6mm in length. |
| Animal Diversity Web gives 2 to 7 mm as the species' overall range | Range length 2 to 7 mm (note: queens: 'Queen fire ants are ... sometimes slightly larger size, between three to seven millimeters') |
| Animal Diversity Web says the name comes from the sting, which feels like intense burning and eventually turns into itching | This sting is the reason for the namesake of fire ants. |
| The ant bites down to get a grip, then drives its stinger in | This action is accomplished by an ant pinching down on the target with its mandibles, then leveraging its gastor into the target. |
| Half a million sisters | the colony population can reach 500,000 workers (note: heading) |
| Half a million sisters | Fire ant workers are non-reproductive females (note: heading: workers are females) |
| a name that also covers the black imported fire ant | The introduction of red imported fire ants and black imported fire ants ( Solenopsis richteri ) into non-native ecosystems has allowed both species to flourish globally. |
| No one has reported a weight for a single fire ant | Weights have not been reported for individual fire ants. |
| Workers vary with the colony's age | Factors that impact the size and shape of the workers are: order of hatching, age of the colony |
| When a colony is under threat, an alarm pheromone makes every ant suddenly more active and they swarm the target | the alert (or alarm) pheromonal signal that occurs when a colony is under threat. This signal has the immediate effect of mobilizing all ants within a colony to become suddenly more motile. This leads to a swarm response on the target (note: vibe.reason) |
| dangerLevel: Medium | The sensation of the sting has been described as an intense burning sensation which eventually transforms into a typical itching sensation. (note: Medium is 'Can injure, but rarely seriously': a painful sting; no source on the page says it kills people) |

## Red Imported Fire Ant. National Invasive Species Information Center, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/terrestrial/invertebrates/red-imported-fire-ant

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Italy | Nearly 90 nests of the red imported fire ant, or Solenopsis invicta , were found near the city of Syracuse, Italy (note: stats.habitat) |
| they probably arrived between 1933 and 1945 | Probably between 1933 and 1945 |
| In 2024 the USDA said imported fire ants | Imported fire ants have invaded about 350 million acres in the U.S., and they cause approximately $8 billion in economic damages per year. Learn more about what’s happening with this invasive species that has spread throughout the southern U.S., and what ARS is doing about it, as the Office of Communications launches a week-long fire ant campaign (June 22-28, 2024) |
| A 2023 news item reported nearly 90 nests near Syracuse, Italy, the first time the species had become established in the wild in Europe | Sep 11, 2023 ... An invasive species of ant has been discovered in Europe for the first time. Nearly 90 nests of the red imported fire ant, or Solenopsis invicta , were found near the city of Syracuse, Italy |
| The ants had sometimes been found in imported goods in Europe, but this was the first wild population | While the ants have occasionally been found in imported products in Europe, this is the first time they have become established in the wild. |
| have invaded about 350 million acres of the US and cause some $8 billion of damage a year | Imported fire ants have invaded about 350 million acres in the U.S., and they cause approximately $8 billion in economic damages per year. |

## Mlot, Tovey & Hu (2011). Fire ants self-assemble into waterproof rafts to survive floods. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1016658108

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| links up with its nestmates into a raft that can float for days | how fire ants S. invicta link their bodies together to build waterproof rafts (note: tagline; stats.superpower) |
| a raft that can float for days | whereas a group can float effortlessly for days (note: tagline; blockquote) |
| Links bodies with its nestmates to form a waterproof raft | link their bodies together to build waterproof rafts (note: stats.superpower) |
| link their bodies together | how fire ants S. invicta link their bodies together to build waterproof rafts |
| One ant on its own struggles in water, but a linked group can float for days | Why does a single fire ant Solenopsis invicta struggle in water, whereas a group can float effortlessly for days? |
| a self-built water-repelling surface, a bit like weaving waterproof cloth | we here demonstrate a self-assembled hydrophobic surface. We find that ants can considerably enhance their water repellency by linking their bodies together, a process analogous to the weaving of a waterproof fabric. |
| Alone, a fire ant struggles in water. Linked together, a group can stay afloat for days. | Why does a single fire ant Solenopsis invicta struggle in water, whereas a group can float effortlessly for days? (note: blockquote) |
| Teamwork as waterproofing | we here demonstrate a self-assembled hydrophobic surface (note: blockquote lead) |

## Fox et al. (2019). Queen venom isosolenopsin A delivers rapid incapacitation of fire ant competitors. Toxicon.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.toxicon.2018.11.428

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The venom is oily and contains insect-killing chemicals called solenopsins | Fire ant venom contains insecticidal alkaloids named 'solenopsins'. (note: 'oily': ADW 'inject an oily alkaloid solution') |
| A queen founding a nest has to succeed alone, and a 2019 study expects her venom to matter against rival ant species | Founding queens must succeed in isolation in the field, where venom is bound to play a role against competitor species (note: from the full-text PDF; abstract: 'when queens must succeed in isolation in the field against competitor species') |
| queen venom knocked out rival ants faster than worker venom did | Queen venom was found to incapacitate rival foragers quicker than worker venom. |
| Queens carry venom too | The venom of fire ant queens (note: queen venom is the subject of the paper; quote from abstract: 'The venom of fire ant queens has remained particularly poorly studied') |

## Ascunce et al. (2011). Global Invasion History of the Fire Ant Solenopsis invicta. Science.

https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1198734

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| at least nine separate introductions into newly invaded areas | at least nine separate introductions of S. invicta have occurred into newly invaded areas |
| A genetic study of 2,144 colonies from 75 sites worldwide found at least nine separate introductions into newly invaded areas | An assessment of genetic variation at a diverse set of molecular markers in 2144 fire ant colonies from 75 geographic sites worldwide revealed that at least nine separate introductions of S. invicta have occurred into newly invaded areas |
| It traced almost all of them back to the main southern US population | the main southern U.S. population is probably the source of all but one of these introductions |