SWARMS of flying ants can often emerge during the summer in Scotland – but why does this happen?
These swarms will often appear after a period of hot and humid weather, most likely during July and August.
The phenomenon has gained such a reputation that there is now a dedicated “Flying Ant Day” for when the swarms emerge, although experts question whether it can actually be pinned down to one day.
Why are there so many flying ants?
Swarms of flying ants of tend to occur when young queen flying ants leave the nest to create their own colony and mate with male flying ants.
They tend to mate while they are flying because it increases their chances of reproduction.
There are so many flying ants because each nest typically has 5000 worker ants with a single queen, but this can be up to as many as 15,000 worker ants.
While the male ants usually die within a few days of mating, worker ants are all female and they typically live for a month.
The queen ant can live for more than 10 years and will spend most of her life in the nest.
When is Flying Ant Day?
Because the swarms are generally triggered by the temperature, the phenomenon happens at different times across the UK.
Researchers from the Royal Society of Biology have refuted the idea that there is a single day every year when flying ants emerge.
Swarms can last for several weeks and usually take place during July and August, on days when the temperature is over 25 degrees Celsius, there is little wind and there is a possibility of rain in the coming days.
Flying Ant Day was officially marked on July 18 this year, although with the current period of humid weather in Scotland, it is possible that we can expect to see more activity.
