Their usual activity is from the spring time through the fall months. During the spring and summer months, the active mounds will send out winged swarmer ants, whose sole job is start new colonies. The southern fire ant will usually nest in loose soil, but at times they can be found in woodwork or masonry. Their nest may be seen as large crevices in the ground that spread out from 2-4 feet. Their nest can be found under houses, under boards or stones, or in cracks in the concrete .
Colonies frequently migrate from one site to another.
The queen needs only a few workers to start a new colony. They can develop a new mound several hundred feed away from their previous location almost overnight. Flooding causes colonies to leave their mounds and float until they can reach land to establish a new mound. Colonies also can migrate to indoor locations. Mounds of loose soil, resembling gopher diggings, are found above ground.