Merritt Island Warnings and Dangers

The most annoying itchy insect bite you can get in Florida is form the fire ant. Some people are allergic to them and can die or pass out from the bite. One fire ant bite will probably only annoy you, but the little @&$*##$&’s use team work and you are likely to be bitten by several at once. Luckily they are easy to avoid. The only time I get bitten is when I unwittingly stand on top of one of their nests or dig one up in the garden.

The nests look like spread out piles of grainy grey-brown dirt. The ants themselves are small and red brown. I’ve never seen a fire ant nest on the beach, they tend to put them in the grass or along the edge of the road.

How the bite happens:
The ants will swarm on your body part, most likely you foot, and then bite all at once. As the bite is happening, it stings like a burn. The ants will stay attached to your skin by their mandibles until you brush them off. Check all your skin and cloths in the area of the bites to make sure you are rid of all ants. They will crawl up you pants legs.

If you think that you have been bitten by fire ants, immediately take an antihistamine like Benadrill. Put ice on the bites or soak them in cold water. This is the only thing that will quell the itch. DO NOT SCRATCH the bites; they will swell up! This will be very difficult because the bites itch like fire! The itch is so intense that it triggers a feeling of panic. DON’T ITCH!

If you start to experience tunnel vision, feel shaky, have a shortness of breath, or if the area of the bites begins to greatly swell (my foot swelled up with a mound the size of an orange) call 911 or go to the emergency room.