What do fire ants look like?

• Size: 1/4 in.
• Color: Reddish-brown to reddish-black
• Body structure: Head, thorax, and abdomen with a stinger on end of the abdomen.

What are the habits of fire ants?

Fire ants prefer warm, dry surroundings and are often found in open fields or un-shaded lawns. Fire ant mounds can grow to sizes of more than two feet in diameter and almost a foot high. That said, fire ants may also build shallow mounds within soil or piles of mulch, making the colonies less easy to detect with the naked eye. Fire ants are intensely protective of their queens and will aggressively attack any animal, including humans, who come in the vicinity of a mound. Fire ants attack the invader by first clamping down with their mandibles and then injecting venom via their stingers.