Black imported fire ant

Taxobox
name = Black imported fire ant
status = secure
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
classis = Insecta
ordo = Hymenoptera
subordo = Apocrita
superfamilia = Vespoidea
familia = Formicidae
subfamilia = Myrmicinae
tribus = Solenopsidini
genus = "Solenopsis"
species = "S. richteri"
binomial = "Solenopsis richteri"
binomial_authority = Buren, 1972

Long thought to either be a Subspecies or color variation of "Solenopsis invicta", the black imported fire ant ("Solenopsis richteri") is now recognized as its own species with a demonstratively different range and living habits. The black imported fire ant seems to be less tolerant of cold and less of a dominant species, and its northern and southern ranges are much less extensive. Black fire ant bites will swell slightly with a small to medium white knot and a large red area around the white spot, 2-4 inches wide, and is very painful. It will start to swell within 35 seconds of being bitten. The venom is roughly the equivalent of a wasp sting. The bite is less painful than the venom, but an encounter with the black fire ant will not be forgotten.