Fire Ants Are Not Native To Texas

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• Fire ants aren't native to Texas, but they got here as soon as they could.
• They were nonexistent in the Lone Star State until the 1970s.
• Zebra mussels, feral hogs, and bull thistle are other invasive species in Texas.

There are some things you just have to live with when you move to Texas. They were here when we got here and are just facts of life.

Walking an old dusty Texas trail in the 1800's and coming upon a timber rattlesnake, though scary, wasn't out of the realm of possibilities. Stepping on a fire ant mound? That would have been unheard of.

Though most people just accept fire ants as a fact of life here in the Lone Star State, that just wasn't always the case according to Texas Monthly. They originated in Brazil and were brought to Texas via Alabama in a ship's ballast.

Fire Ants Haven't Even Been In Texas For A Century

The imported red fire ant was first found in East Texas in the 1970s. They were a source of much speculation at the time, and everyone was really worried about the amount of damage that would be done.

Over the past 50 years, residents have just accepted them as part of our reality. If you asked most people they wouldn't know that they haven't always been here.

It seems that Texas was quite the utopia back in the day. Many of the issues we have were imported in the last 100 years.

It's all a product of being a part of the international trade community. As travel became easier, all of these things just hitched a ride.