Little Fire Ant

Natural history and identification

Little fire ants are tiny, orange to pale brown ants that move relatively slowly and can deliver a painful sting. The Hawaiʻi Ant Lab distinguishes them from other small ants using identification characters, not sting reports alone. Colonies can be transported with infested material. A confirmed specimen is needed to establish a new site record; an island-level presence label does not mean every property is infested.

Kauaʻi occurrence and evidence

Atlas occurrence category: Present — localized active sites. The Kauaʻi record is classified as “Present — localized active sites”. Its cited evidence source is Kauaʻi Invasive Species Committee. KISC is responding to active Kauaʻi sites and monitoring previously infested sites. Exact treatment locations are operational and should not be inferred from this Atlas record.

Account coverage

Published species details have been added. A complete Kauaʻi-specific account of identification, habitat, feeding, reproduction, and population trend is not yet established by the sources linked here.

Names and classification

Scientific name

Wasmannia auropunctata

Common names

Little Fire Ant

Family

Formicidae

Order

Hymenoptera

Record type

species

Kauaʻi occurrence and status

Kauaʻi occurrence

Present — localized active sites

Origin

Introduced — invasive

Conservation status

Active control priority

Process and seasonal context

Seasonal description

Little fire ant (Wasmannia auropunctata) is a tiny invasive ant under active control on Kauaʻi. It delivers painful stings, harms agriculture and pets, and protects sap-feeding pests such as aphids, whiteflies, and scale insects.

Sources and further reading

• Kauaʻi Invasive Species Committee
• Natural history and identification — species source
• https://www.kauaiisc.org/