Bride Steps on 'Aggressive' Ants Nest as She's Walking Down Aisle

A bride recalls the dramatic moment she realized she had stepped on an ants nest while walking up the aisle during the outdoor ceremony.

In February, Jess Davis married her fiancé, Tyson Hoffman, at the Seppeltsfield winery in South Australia's Barossa Valley. It was a day she described as "perfect"—save for an incident that occurred moments into the start of the wedding.

Walking toward her husband-to-be, Davis stepped right through an ants nest. And not just any ants nest either; it was a bull ants nest. "Bull ants are quite aggressive and have a really nasty bite," Davis told Newsweek.

Residing in nests that extend several feet below the ground, bull ants are known to attack any "intruder" coming too close to their nest, regardless of their size. They can also chase intruders a considerable distance from their nest, making them the kind of ant you don't want to encounter on your wedding day.

Outdoor weddings are very much in fashion right now. A survey by The Knot of 12,000 couples who got married in 2022 showed that 72 percent took place either partially or totally outdoors.

This may be a reaction to the pandemic, when many engaged couples were forced to stay indoors and put their wedding plans on hold. But while there's something wonderful about getting married in the great outdoors, it's not without its occasional pitfalls, as Davis discovered on her big day.

Initially, she was unaware there was any problem. "I honestly didn't really notice the ants until I noticed all of my bridesmaids fussing about over my dress behind me," she said. "Then when I looked down, I could see a trail of them walking up through the front of my skirt. At that point, my husband then started to pick them off as they reached my waist."

Most brides might have considered making a run for it. But, as a video of the incident that Davis posted to TikTok shows, she wasn't about to let a few ants ruin her big day.

"I had so many emotions going through my mind," she recalled. "I feel like adrenaline had kicked in at that point. I just tried my hardest to keep a brave face, knowing that everyone was watching and I was surrounded by videographers and photographers."

Davis was determined to not let the ants spoil a special moment. "I had been waiting for three years to get married, after having two weddings canceled because of COVID," she said.

Instead, she channeled past experiences to get through the awkwardness of the situation. "I've definitely become used to being put in some compromising situations and have just learned over time to smile through the pain," she said.

Incredibly, she got through the incident without a single bite, as most of the ants swarming over her dress ended up getting tangled in her skirt.

If anything, Davis reckons she handled the situation better than the rest of the wedding party. "Growing up in Australia and being so used to being surrounded by all sorts of creepy crawlers, I'm not actually too bad with ants, etcetera. I grew up in the country, so they don't bother me too much at all," she said.

"My husband, on the other hand, hates any form of insects, and my bridesmaids also do. I felt more sorry for them than I did for me, as they were the ones picking them off."

Ultimately, the rest of the wedding went off without a hitch, and Davis couldn't have been happier. "Aside from the ants, the rest of the wedding was perfect," she said.

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