Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) camped at a place and went to relieve himself. When he returned, a man had set fire to an ant colony, which was either in the ground or in a tree. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Which of you has done this?" The man said: "I did, O Messenger of Allah." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Put it out, put it out."
Ahmad recorded it; its chain contains Abd al-Rahman bin Abdullah al-Mas'udi, who suffered from confusion (ikhtilat) in his memory.
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) says: We were with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when he passed by an ant colony that had been burned, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: It is not fitting for any human being to punish with the punishment of Allah Almighty.
Ahmad recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.
Hadith Takhrij«اخرجه احمد فى المسند (4018) ، أخرجه سنن أبي داود برقم: 2675، وأخرجه مسند أحمد برقم: 4008، وأخرجه المعجم الكبير للطبراني برقم: 10373، وأخرجه المعجم الأوسط للطبراني برقم: 2325»
Sayyiduna Sahl bin Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade killing the ant, the honeybee, the hoopoe, the shrike (types of birds) and the frog.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir; its chain contains a narrator, Abd al-Muhaymin bin Abbas bin Sahl, and he is da'if (weak).