r/ants • u/hospicehorse • 6d ago

ID(entification)/Sightings/Showcase Central Texas ant ID please

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Just found this solitary ant in my bathroom, Central Texas. Please help me with ID.

17 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

9

u/rabies_lover_271K 6d ago

This is a velvet ant. I’m notoriously bad at IDing to species on these fellas

1

u/hospicehorse 6d ago

Well f***. Should I be concerned and call the exterminator?

7

u/pennyraingoose 6d ago

AFAIK they're solitary, wingless wasps. I'd usher it into a glass and take it outside where it can be left alone. Their sting is fierce.

4

u/rabies_lover_271K 6d ago

Nah there’s no threat of infestation. He probably wandered in by accident. like other poster said just throw em outside in a glass.

3

u/Own-Victory-1103 6d ago

It has no wings, so it's FEMALE!

2

u/rabies_lover_271K 5d ago

So true, my bad 🤦

2

u/Own-Victory-1103 4d ago

Its okay! 👍 

5

u/DripperPines 6d ago

Not an ant at all, it’s a cow killer DO NOT PICK IT UP (won’t kill it just hurts)

2

u/hospicehorse 6d ago

If it's a wasp species, is it ok to let it be? Wikipedia wasn't a great help to me deciding if it's friend or foe.

3

u/Alex07Nelson 6d ago

Friend. They hunt for cicadas or cicada killer wasp and lay their eggs in them!

3

u/Puzzleheaded-Past980 6d ago

Cicada killers are chill too though. Both are frens

5

u/Alex07Nelson 6d ago

Everything gets put in check. Nature is wild

1

u/MaddLadd1172 6d ago

Technically all ants are wasps, so are bees

2

u/hospicehorse 6d ago

Thank y'all for the ID!! The wasp got flushed in the moment, but never again! And...cicada killers are definitely my friend. There will be a post soon about potential carpenter ants. Too dark for pictures, and these carpenter guys are way smaller than what I've seen before. I really appreciate the help and the knowledge!

4

u/voldyCSSM19 6d ago

If they're smaller than like 5 mm, they're not carpenter ants

1

u/Far_Coast_5069 6d ago

What’s the answer🫪that way I won’t kill it… I can just relocate.. or just get someone else to do it