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Yes, fire ants are found throughout the New England coastline including New Jersey. Homeowners frequently don’t realize the fact that fire ants serve as an invasive species throughout the U.S., and fire ants in New Jersey pose serious threats to our ecosystem.

Understanding what separates fire ants from other Garden State ant species remains essential. Call our Kapture team if you need help identifying pests. We give free inspections and respond to all inquiries regarding fire ants in New Jersey.

Are there fire ants in New Jersey?

Although Myrmica Rubra ants are tiny in size they deliver powerful bites. The stings from these tiny fire ants in New Jersey deliver painful shocks that feel like electrical jolts instead of typical ant bites. Myrmica Rubra ants display extreme aggression when protecting their territory unlike their regular counterparts who simply march on without any confrontations.

European fire ants in New Jersey traveled to North America during the early 1900s and have steadily established their territory throughout the region with significant growth along the New England coastline. These creatures prosper in humid settings which means you’ll frequently spot them hiding in gardens, forests, and park areas where humidity is prevalent and find plenty to eat.

Their ability to dominate ecosystems combined with their painful sting makes these fire ants in New Jersey particularly dangerous. These ants build large colonies that often contain multiple queens which creates a significant challenge for effective control. Fire ants become ecological threats when they overpower native species and destabilize food chains while also presenting significant challenges to gardeners and homeowners. If found in cargo from other countries, the ants are usually quarantined to stop the potential for them to invade our state even more.

Should you encounter a swarm of aggressive reddish-brown ants it’s likely you’ve met Myrmica Rubra and you should definitely avoid making them angry!

Learn to Recognize Fire Ants in New Jersey

Fire Ants: Physical Characteristics

Locating these fire ants in New Jersey is pretty straightforward thanks to their distinct reddish-brown coloration. These insects display numerous color variations because some appear more red than brown leading scientists to use “fire” in their name. The worker ants are on the smaller side, and they will only grow to a maximum of 5 mm.

Fire ants are divided into two distinct sections—the head is nice and sculpted while the middle section has a glossy sheen. Typical of most ants, they have tiny hairs all along the abdomen. Their antennae have 12 different segments, and the scape—the first section of their antennae—is bent.

Fire Ants: Nesting Practices

Fire ants in New Jersey excel at remaining unseen to the human eye. These aggressive insects choose stealthy nesting methods compared to their ant relatives who construct visible soil mounds. Fire ants choose to nest within moist hidden areas instead of building dirt mounds by tucking their homes beneath rocks and tree roots as well as shrubs and woodpiles and their preference for underground burrows makes them even more difficult to detect.

The structural organization of fire ant colonies presents an additional fascinating aspect to study. Research reveals that these ants establish extensive colonies which encompass multiple nests that house various queens. Fire ants control the environment completely in certain regions where they exist.

Before you celebrate finding their nest, remember that it may not stay there. Fire ants in New Jersey show great mobility as they frequently move their nests several times throughout the humid seasons. These ants are hard to track due to their adaptability which makes their removal even more challenging.

The Lifecycle of Fire Ants

Like other ants, the drones set off to find a queen to mate with during the fall of the year. The drone lives for one purpose, and that’s to inject the queen with sperm for reproduction. Once they complete this task, they will perish, as they’ve fulfilled their destiny.

The queen has a big job ahead of her, and she must lay her eggs during the winter months. It’s not uncommon for fire ants in New Jersey to spend the wintertime alone, or they may have other impregnated queens join them. Once the weather changes and they can start reproduction, they must find enough food to sustain them for this laborious process.

Unlike some queens in other ant colonies, the fire ant queen can forage for nutrition for herself. This means she doesn’t have to wait on workers to bring her sustenance. She will survive much longer than those other queens. It takes about two years for a queen to mature enough to form her own colony, and the fire ant will produce two different types of offspring, the rapid and slow brood.

Family workers are still looking for food, but they’re also concerned with gathering stuff to ensure the protection of the nest. However, while the European fire ant is found here, their mating habits aren’t always shared. Scientists have yet to see the fire ant take a nuptial flight in the US. Instead, fire ants in New Jersey come here by hitching a ride on infested plants, mulch, and bulk soil.

Once in the US, the colonies will move to other areas using the process called budding. This is when an existing colony transfers and makes a new nest that’s part of another active group, and they form what’s called a satellite colony.

Do they have an economic impact?

The fire ant has become a big issue in the United States mainly because they’re so aggressive. It’s hard to enjoy a picnic or a day at the park because these stinging and biting little insects can certainly inhibit the day’s enjoyment. Not only can people disrupt these colonies, but they can also be disturbed by pets.

Although most bites do not cause severe allergic reactions, people can experience anaphylactic shock from the toxic venom in some cases. The sting delivers intense pain yet remains a non-lethal threat for most individuals. Waterways such as seacoasts and lakes increase your chance of coming across these fire ants in New Jersey. Even streams seem to draw them, as it raises the humidity in the area.

While the nuisance factor is one thing to consider, we can’t ignore their impact on the natural ecosystem. The fire ant is known to reduce the ant diversity in the Garden State, and they feed on scales and aphids, which takes them away from other insects that also need these nutritional forms to survive.

Scientists have tried to reduce these ants’ impact on other insects by stopping the spread. However, you must know the risks of transporting fire ants in New Jersey to your yard, especially if you purchase mulch, topsoil, or plants. Ensure you inspect the products at the store before you bring them into your home.

When the colonies are on the smaller side or built underground, it’s not as easy to detect. However, if you find them around your home, you need to call in a reliable source to identify them as fire ants, and you’ll want to get rid of any materials drawing them to your area.

Since fire ants in New Jersey like high humidity and moist soil regions, you should take preventative measures to make your place less inhabitable. Here are a few things you can do to make your lawn less appealing: