Kelly Ripa Calls Out “Perverts” In The ‘Live’ Audience After They Laugh At Her Talking About Bugs “Spreading Their Legs”

Published May 7, 2025, 11:33 a.m. ET

Kelly Ripa had Live with Kelly and Mark viewers in hysterics on Wednesday — and all because of an accidental insect innuendo.

Ripa brought up the recent rise in Asian needle ants this morning, reading that it’s “been in the United States since 1932.”

“But they’re sort of spreading their — they don’t have wings. They’re spreading their legs,” she said, unintentionally causing a roar of laughter from the audience.

Mark Consuelos quipped, “Come again?”

Once the laughter died down, Ripa teased, “Listen, you perverts.”

She eventually got back on track, explaining that “they’re a very invasive species” but “not as aggressive as fire ants.”

“If people are allergic to them, or suffer from anaphylaxis, they can cause a lot of problems,” she added.

As Ripa read out the long list of potential symptoms of being bitten by an Asian needle ant, including “low blood pressure, constriction of the airways” and “diarrhea,” she checked in on Consuelos.

“Are you OK?” she asked.

After he confirmed he was alright, Ripa continued, “Dizziness and fainting. Just listening to them causes dizziness and fainting.”

Photo: ABC

She wrapped the list with “psychological symptoms such as a feeling of impending doom.”

“Maybe I was bitten by one, and I don’t know it. Because I’ve had that feeling for many years,” she joked.

Ripa explained that when Live EP Michael Gelman showed her a picture of the insect, she could not determine which side of it was its head and tail.

Consuelos asked, “Is it mating?”

While Ripa thought “it’s eating something else” and “having a meal,” Consuelos offered up another interpretation.

“Or it’s spreading its legs,” he quipped.

Ripa was soon convinced, telling Gelman, “You know, the more I look at it, Gelman, it could be spreading its legs.”

Live with Kelly and Mark airs on weekdays. Check out their website for your local listings.