Harvey creates a river of fire ants in Texas

A photo of fire ants filling a Texas river thanks to Harvey floodinga is what nightmares are made of. Swipe through to see photos of how other animals have fared in Harvey. A photo of fire ants filling a Texas river thanks to Harvey floodinga is what nightmares are made of. Swipe through to see photos of how other animals have fared in Harvey. Photo: Bill O'Zimmerman/Twitter Photo: Bill O'Zimmerman/Twitter Image 1 of / 35 Caption Close Harvey creates a river of fire ants in Texas 1 / 35 Back to Gallery

A river full of nightmares has materialized in Texas' Gulf Coast thanks to Tropical Storm Harvey.

The photo of what appears to show a river filled with fire ants was taken by the aunt of Twitter user Bill O'Zimmerman, who tweeted it Monday morning. The tweet quickly went viral and has collected more than 2,500 retweets.

Mounds of fire ants have become one of Harvey's creepiest storylines after other videos and photos of the insects joining together as rafts were shared on social media.

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"They use the wax together on their bodies to keep the queen and other members of the colony in the middle of the ball dry so they don't suffocate," Mike Merchant, entomology specialist at the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, told Wired.

A request for comment has been placed with O'Zimmerman.