How to identify them

What looks like a large, fuzzy, brightly colored ant running across sandy ground is actually a female velvet ant — a wingless wasp. They are half to three-quarters of an inch, densely hairy, and vividly red-orange and black, a warning coloration. Males have wings and look quite different, but it is the ground-running females that people encounter and that sting.

Behavior and biology in South Florida

Velvet ants are solitary and are most often seen wandering over open, sandy areas, lawns, and gardens in the warm months. Females are parasites of ground-nesting bees and wasps, entering their burrows to lay eggs.

They are not aggressive and do not swarm, but the female’s sting is legendary for its intensity — hence “cow killer” — and they will sting readily if handled or stepped on with bare feet. Their tough exoskeleton makes them hard to swat, and they can produce a squeaking sound when disturbed.

Signs of an infestation

• Fuzzy red-and-black “ants” running across sandy soil, lawns, or patios
• Activity in open, sunny, sandy areas rather than in trails or colonies
• Encounters while gardening or walking barefoot in the yard
• Ground-nesting bees and wasps nearby (their hosts)

Why they are a problem

Velvet ants are mainly a hazard because of their sting, which is exceptionally painful even though it is rarely dangerous to healthy people. In yards, play areas, and around barefoot foot traffic, especially where children play in sandy spots, an accidental step or grab can result in a memorable sting.

How Bugsy’s treats velvet ants

Because velvet ants are solitary wanderers rather than colony-nesters, control focuses on the conditions and host insects that draw them: our technicians address ground-nesting bee and wasp activity in the yard and treat the sandy harborage areas where velvet ants and their hosts concentrate. We advise on reducing the bare, sandy ground they favor.

Preventing velvet ants

• Wear shoes in sandy yards and play areas to avoid accidental stings
• Reduce ground-nesting bee and wasp activity that velvet ants parasitize
• Thicken turf and mulch bare sandy patches they roam
• Keep children’s play areas away from open sandy ground where possible
• Never pick one up — the sting is intensely painful

At a glance

Wingless waspVery painful stingGround-dwellingSolitary