Houston ant attack

Ant invasion! New species that loves electronics joins fire ants in overrunning Houston

In drought-weary Houston, recent rainstorms have been a welcome sight. But with that watery relief has come the resurgence of a familiar Texas foe — ants. Even with the cooler fall weather, fresh mounds dot every available grassy patch, turning a pleasant autumn stroll into a creepy nightmare with one wrong step.

CultureMap turned to Rice University evolutionary biologist and ant expert Scott Solomon to find out why these tiny pests appear to be multiplying.

"Though it may seem like they're everywhere, there aren't necessarily more ants," he assures. "We're just seeing a lot more of them because of the rain and the lower temperatures."

"Though it may seem like there everywhere, there aren't necessarily more ants. "

Everyone's favorite Gulf Coast pest, the red fire ant, has been busy at work after Houston's Halloween storms. Solomon says that, because their larvae require specific moisture level to thrive, fire ants constantly adjust and relocate nests based on the dampness of the soil. As ground-dwellers, these ants really only have two options: build a mound after a soaking rain or dig deeper during a drought.

But Solomon notes another factor at play in the area's ant boom . . . another species.

The "tawny crazy ant" — or "Rasberry ant" a name derived from Tom Rasberry, the Pearland exterminator who first found them in Houston in 2002 — resembles its fire ant cousin, but with a slightly lighter rust color and a truly bizarre manner of walking (hence the crazy part). Both species hail from central South America.

"Tawny ants build temporary nests in existing cavities. In a forest, they might pick a hollow in a tree. But in an urban environment, they tend to look in and around buildings."

Though they don't sting, tawny ants do have a bizarre and annoying penchant for electronics, overrunning and shorting out everything from fuse boxes to laptop computers.

As far as combating Houston's dueling ant species goes, Solomon reminds CultureMap that he's not in the business of killing the invasive species, just studying them. However, he did note that the complete absence of ants in a certain area only attracts new colonies.

For more on Lone Star ants, see the extensive guide offered by Texas A&M's Center of Urban and Structural Entomology, which comes complete with possible management techniques.

After recent rainstorms, Houston is in the throes of a veritable ant invasion.

Photo by Joe MacGown Mississippi Entomological Museum

After recent rainstorms, Houston is in the throes of a veritable ant invasion.

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hail hail

Self-driving Waymo robotaxis hit the streets in Houston

Waymo/ Facebook

Waymo is now offering driverless rides to Houstonians.

Waymo will begin dispatching its robotaxis in Houston and four more cities in Texas and Florida, expanding the territory covered by its fleet of self-driving cars to 10 major U.S. metropolitan markets.

The move into Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Orlando, Florida, announced Tuesday, February 24, widens Waymo's early lead in autonomous driving while rival services from Tesla and the Amazon-owned Zoox are still testing their vehicles in only a few U.S. cities.

In contrast, Waymo's robotaxis already provide more than 400,000 weekly trips in the six metropolitan areas where they have been transporting passengers: Phoenix, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Miami, Atlanta, and Austin.

Waymo's cars soft launched service in San Antonio in November 2025, initially only offering the rides to employees. The company first began testing Alamo City’s roads the previous May as part of a multi-city “road trip” meant to map out roadways and help alleviate local concern over safety and other issues.

Waymo operates its ride-hailing service through its own app in all the U.S. cities except Atlanta and Austin, where its robotaxis can only be summoned through Uber's ride-hailing service.

The expansion into four more markets marks a significant step toward Waymo's goal to surpass 1 million weekly paid trips by the end of 2026. Without identifying where its robotaxis will be available next, Waymo is targeting a list of eight other cities that include Las Vegas, Washington, Detroit, and Boston while signaling its first overseas availability is likely to be London.

To help pay for more robotaxis, Waymo recently raised $16 billion as part of the financial infusion that puts the value of the company at $126 billion. The valuation fueled speculation that Waymo may eventually be spun off from its corporate parent Alphabet, where it began as a secret project within Google in 2009.

Although Waymo is opening up in four more cities, its robotaxis initially will only be made available to a limited number of people with its ride-hailing app in San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, and Orlando before the service will be available to all corners in those markets.

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This article contains additional reporting from CultureMap San Antonio editor Brandon Watson.

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