The Ants That Fly for Just One Day in Britain

[FamTimes reporter Park Joo-hye] In Britain, large numbers of ants take to the air all at once on a single day.

Britain's flying ants are common black ants often seen in backyards, and only the males and queens fly. Ants fly in order to mate.

Ants usually mate in July or August, when the weather is best suited for queens to mate and establish colonies.

Ants mate while flying. After mating, the queen removes her own wings and searches for a suitable place underground to build a new nest.

Meanwhile, male ants, which are born in a colony only during mating season, have just one role: mating with new queens. After mating, males survive for only another day or two.

In Britain, huge swarms of ants take flight all at once on just one day. On that day, millions of ants emerge above ground simultaneously across the country. The phenomenon has earned it the nickname “Flying Ant Day.”

However, many people in Britain are not pleased by the sight of millions of flying ants. Although the phenomenon lasts only one day, the swarms cause considerable disruption to daily life.

Ant swarms can interrupt sporting events, and ants may cling to people's hair and clothing or to car windshields, disrupting driving.

Reporter Park Joo-hye fam1@pcss.co.kr