Beware: Tiny Brown Bugs are the Cause of Painful Bites in Massachusetts

With the Labor Day weekend providing a nice stretch of sunny, warm weather in Massachusetts this year I thought it would be fun to throw a little pool party for my daughter Hannah. Hannah is three and she loves to play outside, especially in her kiddie pools. That's right she has more than one. So I set up a popup tent for the adults to sit under and I placed the two pools next to each other so Hannah could go back and forth between the two. I also set up a little sprayer that she could run through. Needless to say, it was a very thrilling day for Hannah.

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Some Very Small Bugs Crashed The Pool Party

At one point I sat in one of Hannah's pools but it didn't take long before I noticed I was getting attacked by something. It wasn't the typical mosquito as the pain was very noticeable and amplified. I ended up getting bit or stung on my arm, back, and leg and I'll admit it did not feel great. I took some photos. You can see the red marks from the attacks.

What Was Biting Me?

I noticed that what was biting me were small brown ants. Not only did they get into the pool but over by the tent where my wife was sitting there was a swarm of them and they were crawling all over her sandals. Luckily she (and nobody else at the pool party) was bitten by these ants. Check out the photos of her sandals.

I'm not really sure what type of ants these are. Could they be Pharao Ants, Fire Ants, or Pavement Ants? Is there an ant expert out there who can identify these ants? I would love to know exactly what was biting me. Either way, these particular ants do bite but luckily the pain along with the actual red marks don't last that long. Have you had any similar experiences with aggressive ants?