Tapinoma melanocephalum (Fabricius) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), commonly called the ghost ant, is an exotic tramp species thought to have originated from tropical regions of Africa or Asia (Smith, 1965). Due to its spread by commerce, it is now widespread in subtropical and tropical regions around the globe. However, it also has become established in greenhouses and other buildings in temperate regions (Nickerson and Bloomcamp, 2006). In the United States, the ghost ant is well established in Florida, where it is ranked as one of the top three urban pest ants in the state along with the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, and the crazy ant, Paratrechina longicornis (Latreille) (Klotz et al., 1995), and it is also considered to be a significant pest in Hawaii (Nickerson and Bloomcamp, 2006). This species was discovered in Texas in the mid 1990's, when it was thought to have been accidentally introduced with plants shipped from Florida (Chenault, 1997). Although this species has been found in some northern states in the United States and even in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, these occurrences were in greenhouses or in other heated structures (Nickerson and Bloomcamp, 2006).

Here, we report the first record of T. melanocephalum in Mississippi. Specimens were collected by Hill and MacGown on 30 April 2008 at an outdoor nursery specializing in palm trees (Arecaceae) in Bay St. Louis, Hancock County, Mississippi. This particular nursery was known to import plants from Florida, and our investigation of this nursery (and others in the...