fire ants
Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The American Samoa Department of Agriculture and the American Samoa Community College’s (ASCC) entomology lab have detected a new ant pest on Tutuila. Dr. Casper Vanderwoude of the University of Hawaii Ant Lab has confirmed the new invader to be the little fire ant,...

![Compared to the size of a dime, the little fire ants visible here may seem too tiny to matter much, but their sting can be painful to humans and they also harm the local ecosystem. ASCC-ACNR Land Grant found these ants in the Tafeta area, and is asking for the public's help in stopping their spread to other areas of Tutuila. [courtesy photo] fire ants compared to the size of a dime](https://www.samoanews.com/sites/default/files/styles/teaser/public/field/image/ascc_little_ants_1.jpg?itok=FN9dxacm)