All ants can bite, but, of the species that make an impact, fire ants are most well known. There are four species of fire ants in the United States. Two are considered native and two others, also known as red imported fire ants (or RIFAs), are an invasive species from South America. These imported fire ants are very aggressive and are found mostly throughout the southeastern part of the U.S.
Insect Shield permethrin treated clothing combined with a topical repellent like Deet will repel some kinds of ants, however fire ants can be extremely aggressive when they are disturbed or when they are emerging from their nests. We at Insect Shield do not make any claims about using our products to avoid bites from fire ants.
Red fire ants not only bite, they sting numerous times, causing a painful burning sensation that also gave them their name. Other ant species sting, like harvester ants, carpenter ants, and acrobat ants.