Species guide · Updated September 27, 2026
Little fire ant in Hawaiʻi
Wasmannia auropunctata
Little fire ants are tiny, pale orange and slow-moving, and their stings cause large red welts. They can blind pets, overrun yards and farms, and move in plants and mulch. They reached Hawaiʻi in the late 1990s. The state asks everyone to test their home and yard and report suspected ants.
What to report
- Stings from tiny orange ants, especially from trees or on pets.
- Ants collected on a test stick.
- A new place, plant purchase or mulch delivery where you found them.
Not this
- Tropical fire ants, which are established in Hawaiʻi, are larger, move quickly and have a proportionally larger head.
A report is one observation at one place and time. It is not a count of animals and not an estimate of how many live there.
Who to call
Who to contact
FeralMap does not send your report to any agency. If a situation needs a response, contact them yourself using the details here.
- Hawaiʻi Ant LabLittle fire ants: free test kits, free classes and treatment guidance.
- 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline · 808-643-7378Plants and animals seen where they have not been seen before: a mongoose on Kauaʻi or Lānaʻi, a deer on Hawaiʻi Island. It is not the place for established animals such as feral cats, pigs, goats or chickens.
Links last reviewed 2026-09-27. A wrong link or a missing contact: contact@nene.org.
What to do on each island
Test suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.
| Island | What to do |
|---|---|
| Hawaiʻi Island | ContactTest suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.Hawaiʻi Ant Lab · 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline |
| Maui | ContactTest suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.Hawaiʻi Ant Lab · 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline |
| Oʻahu | ContactTest suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.Hawaiʻi Ant Lab · 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline |
| Kauaʻi | ContactTest suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.Hawaiʻi Ant Lab · 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline |
| Molokaʻi | ContactTest suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.Hawaiʻi Ant Lab · 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline |
| Lānaʻi | ContactTest suspected ants and report them to 643-PEST; the Hawaiʻi Ant Lab offers free test kits. Then add it to the map.Hawaiʻi Ant Lab · 643-PEST, the statewide pest hotline |
Reports of little fire ant on the map
Public little fire ant reports, all time
Open the full map · Select a cell to see its reports. Locations are generalized cells, never exact points.
Common questions
- How do I test for them?
- The Hawaiʻi Ant Lab sends free test kits and explains how to collect and send a sample.
Read the project overview, the privacy policy, or download the public dataset.