Most Painful Insect Stings in Texas
The most painful insect sting in the world belongs to the bullet ant of Central and South America, which rates a 4, the top of the Schmidt sting pain index. Tarantula hawks and warrior wasps also rate a 4. In Texas, the worst stings come from tarantula hawks, harvester ants, velvet ants and some paper wasps.
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How the Schmidt Sting Pain Index Works
Entomologist Justin Schmidt built the index from stings he took himself while studying bees, wasps and ants, starting with a 1983 paper on their venoms. It runs from 0, a sting that can't break human skin, to 4, the most painful known. A single honey bee sting is the reference point at 2, and half steps like 2.5 fill the gaps.
Pain and danger are two separate things. In Schmidt's 2019 study of sting pain and lethality, he found no pattern linking how much a sting hurts to how toxic the venom is. Tarantula hawks hurt terribly but pose little risk, while harvester ants carry the most toxic venom known from any bee, wasp or ant.
The real danger from most stings is an allergic reaction or a large number of stings at once. About 25 people die from bee and wasp stings each year in the US, and about one in Texas, according to Texas A&M AgriLife's guide to venomous animals of Texas.
Texas Stings Ranked by Pain
Texas has stingers from the top of the index to the bottom. This table ranks the ones DFW families meet most, using Schmidt's ratings and the Texas A&M guide.
| Insect | Schmidt rating | Where you meet it | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tarantula hawk | 4 | Summer flowers and open ground | Blinding pain that fades in about 5 minutes |
 Harvester ant |
3 | Bare, gravelly mounds in open fields | Intense pain that can last 4 to 8 hours |
| Velvet ant, or cow killer |
Up to 3 | Bare ground and lawns in summer | An extremely painful sting from a long stinger |
 Paper wasp, or red wasp |
1.5 to 3 by species | Eaves, porch ceilings and fences | Pain that eases in a few hours to a few days |
 Honey bee |
2 | Clover, flower beds and shrubs | Intense, immediate pain with the stinger left behind |
| Yellowjacket |
About 2 | Ground nests and trash cans in fall | Sharp pain, swelling for days and lingering itch |
| Red imported fire ant |
1 | Lawn mounds after rain | Burning, then a pustule that lasts a week or more |
| Tarantula hawk wasp | 4 |
|---|---|
| Harvester ant | 3 |
| Velvet ant, a wingless wasp | up to 3 |
| Paper wasp | 1.5 to 3 |
| Honey bee | 2 |
| Yellowjacket | about 2 |
| Red imported fire ant | 1 |
A low number can still mean a bad day. A fire ant scores a 1 per sting, but many workers sting together when one releases an alarm chemical, and a disturbed mound can mean many stings at once.
Puss Caterpillars and Other Surprise Stingers
Some painful stings in DFW yards don't come from bees, wasps or ants, so Schmidt never rated them. The puss caterpillar, also called an asp, looks like a tan or gray tuft of fur on elms, oaks, hollies and other trees. Texas A&M AgriLife reports intense, throbbing pain within five minutes of touching one, and a sting on the arm can ache all the way to the armpit.
That pain usually fades within an hour, though a rash, fever or nausea can follow, and even dead caterpillars can sting. Teach kids to leave any fuzzy caterpillar alone. Saddleback and io moth caterpillars carry stinging spines too.
The striped bark scorpion is the other one to know. It's the only scorpion found in the eastern part of Texas, and its sting causes sharp, immediate pain with swelling that can last for days. Texas A&M doesn't list any Texas scorpion as deadly.
How to Treat a Painful Sting
Most stings need only basic care, and quick action keeps the swelling down. These steps follow the Texas A&M first aid advice.
- Move away fast, since a short sprint often leaves bees and wasps behind.
- Scrape out a bee's stinger and venom sac right away with a credit card or a fingernail.
- Take off rings, watches and tight shoes before the area swells.
- Wash the sting with soap and water, then hold a cold pack on it to ease pain and swelling.
- Leave fire ant pustules unbroken, because an opened blister invites infection.
For a puss caterpillar sting, an ice pack and an oral antihistamine help with the burning and itch. For saddleback and io moth stings, press clear tape onto the skin and peel it off to pull out the spines. Get emergency care right away if anyone has trouble breathing or swallowing, turns dizzy or weak, starts vomiting or breaks out in hives. Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 can help with anything in between.
Keeping Stingers Away From Your Yard
Of all the stingers on this list, fire ants and wasps are the most likely to settle in your yard, and both come back. Fire ant mounds pop up after rain, often along sidewalks and play areas. Our fire ant treatment for DFW lawns goes after the colony instead of just the mound you can see. North of the metro, homes around Aubrey get the same approach through ant control in Aubrey.
Paper wasps and yellowjackets build near doors, eaves and grills, right where people walk. We treat nests any time of day with wasp nest removal around DFW homes, and the quarterly plan treats new nests as they show up.
Painful Insect Stings FAQ
What are the most painful stings in the world?
Only a few insects earn Schmidt's top rating of 4. They're the bullet ant, two tarantula hawk species and the warrior wasp, which lives in tropical forests. Dozens of others rate a 3, including North American harvester ants and several paper wasps.
Are yellowjacket stings the worst?
No. Schmidt rated yellowjacket stings about a 2, the same as a honey bee. They feel worse because a yellowjacket can sting again and again, and foraging workers turn aggressive in the fall.
Does a bee sting hurt more in some places?
Yes. In a 2014 study, a researcher let honey bees sting him in 25 body spots and found the nostril and upper lip hurt the most. The skull, the tip of the middle toe and the upper arm hurt the least.
Do velvet ants really kill cows?
No. The red velvet ant earned the name "cow killer" from its painful sting, not from killing livestock. It's a wingless wasp, not an ant, and only the females can sting.
If fire ants or wasps keep turning up where your family plays, get a quote online or call, and we'll treat the nests and mounds at the source.
