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The Truth About National Flying Ant Day
We’re all familiar with the swarms of winged insects that appear on hot summer days. But what are they up to?
‘Bloody hell!’ said a neighbour, spluttering and swiping the air, ‘It really is Flying Ant Day.’
Most unofficial holidays, like April Fools Day or National Frozen Yoghurt Day (February 6), have set dates. Even if they don’t have a specific date they have the same slot in the calendar every year, like last Monday of January (Bubblewrap Appreciation Day) or third Friday of December (National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day). But some, like Easter, are moveable feasts — and that goes for the folk holiday known as Flying Ant Day.
Flying Ant Day is more of a brief season than a strict 24-hour window. Every year, a massive invasion of flying ants appears across the country. According to the Natural History Museum, the flying ants (known as alates) we see in the UK are the sexually mature queens and males of the black garden ant. Swarming usually coincides with a period of hot or humid weather, possibly after summer rain, and take place over a season rather than a single day.
Nuptial flight
Why do they do it? As a colony reaches its limits of expansion, the queen starts to develop eggs that turn…
