Go Local Food seems to have missed an outbreak of flying ants this year so far. Quite a subject it would seem – and no there seems not to be just one day when it happens. There has been a deep and three year long flying ant day survey if you want all the information on the matter – flying ant survey and all based on observations undertaken by the public. Citizen science being really interesting here. Were any of you readers involved?
The BBC has written a summary of the findings in an easy to read form with pictures. Seems it’s all part of the breeding cycle whereby perspective female queens and males fly to mate in order to start new nests. Not every pair will succeed so you won’t be over run by ants nests and to quote from the BBC “Ants are incredibly important in the ecosystem. As predators they keep on top of other insects and as prey (especially flying ants) they feed many birds and mammals.”
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