From tending to your garden to outdoor eating, the majority of summer is spent outside. However, with the great outdoors comes an even greater number of insects.

Although the majority of bugs are harmless, there are a few whose bite or sting can certainly put a damper on your fun. These facts will help you identify which insects you need to steer clear of while you’re outdoors.

Ants

• There are more than 12,000 species of ants all over the world.
• They are tiny, red, or black in color.
• They live in colonies found in the dirt.
• All ants deliver bites that can itch and swell. The most painful bites stem from fire ants and bullet ants.

Ticks

• Ticks are founded in heavily-wooded areas throughout the country.
• They are the size of a sesame seed, and are reddish-brown in color.
• A tick can deliver a bite that can be either harmless with no symptoms, or very dangerous.
• There are multiple tick-borne diseases that can be life-threatening if they’re not caught in time: Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Lyme disease, and Colorado tick fever.

Horseflies

• Horseflies are found around bodies of water. They’re black in color with green eyes.
• Adult horseflies only live for a few days.
• They’re attracted to such things as movement, shiny surfaces, carbon dioxide, and warmth.
• Their knife-life mouth parts produce a painful bite.

Mosquitos

• Mosquitos are cold-blooded flying insects that prefer temperatures over 80 degrees. They shut down and hibernate for the winter.
• Their activity peaks during dusk hours.
• They have slender bodies with scaled wings and long legs.
• Their painful bite leaves behind hard and itchy bumps.
• Mosquitos are known to carry many infectious diseases including malaria, West Nile virus, and dengue fever.

Wasps

• Wasps are similar in appearance to bees, but have a long and thin body.
• They hibernate during the winter months and reappear once springtime arrives.
• Unlike bees, wasps have the ability to sting a target multiple times.
• Wasps produce painful stings that can cause localized swelling. For some, a serious allergic reaction can occur.

Note: If you’re either stung or bit by an outdoor insect, be sure to head to your doctors if symptoms worsen.