Few creatures can tangle with a velvet ant and walk away unscathed. These ground-dwelling insects are not ants, but parasitic wasps known for their excruciating stings. Now researchers have discovered ...

When you see a red velvet ant, the first thing you will probably ask yourself is “what the heck is that thing?” It kind of looks like a giant ant, but it also looks like a wingless wasp. They are ...

The sting of a female velvet ant is one of the most painful in the animal kingdom. Now, researchers have discovered that these insects have multiple proteins in their venom that make it exquisitely ...

For the record, ant bites aren’t as common as you might think. “All ants can bite but they rarely do unless harassed,” says Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, Ph.D., associate director of community & urban ...

The first thing to understand about velvet ants is that they are not, in fact, ants. They're wasps, some of which are wingless, and are named in part for their fluffy exteriors. About the size of a ...

For the record, ant bites aren’t as common as you might think. “All ants can bite but they rarely do unless harassed,” says Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, Ph.D., associate director of community & urban ...

What's black and white and red all over? It might be a velvet ant. But discerning which one could be head-scratching challenge. It's a challenge made much easier, however, by a new field guide ...