Flying ants

House of Usher · 19 July, 2010, 05:36:38 PM

Spotted today in Cardiff. The air's quite thick with them out there.

I checked to see when we talked about this before, and it seems it was 6 years ago:
http://www.2000adonline.com/forum/index.php/topic,9850.0.html

staticgirl · 19 July, 2010, 05:48:20 PM

Yes it appears to be Flying Ant Day. I am sequestered indoors but many of my mates on Twitter have been moaning about them.

Zarjazzer · 19 July, 2010, 05:50:27 PM

I for one welcome our new ant overlords and pledge them my fealty.

Radbacker · 20 July, 2010, 04:59:10 AM

you guys probably have namby pamby gay little flying ants over there. In Oz when the flyng ants are out in force a warning goes on the radio to keep all small dogs and cats indoors as they've been known to be carried off by the blighters!

Cu Radbacker

House of Usher · 20 July, 2010, 11:06:31 AM

I am interested to see if there are any further occurrences this summer. Ants lose their wings very soon after hatching, and typically only get one day's flight out of them. The fliers from different colonies all emerging at the same time maximizes the chances of mating and brings together the biggest gene pool.

I saw a few that had emerged early and possibly prematurely on Sunday. I'm wondering how many I'll see today, if any at all.

Stuzzle · 20 July, 2010, 06:33:31 PM

Oh didn't know it was a national epidemic, thought it was just a random occurrence on my back doorstep. A whole swarm of the winged and non-winged mothertruckers!! Got the ant powder straight all over that posse

House of Usher · 20 July, 2010, 06:43:43 PM

Pouring down, so no flying ants today! That may well be it for the year, at least in south Wales. The ants have sent out their breeders, they've taken wing, mated and returned to the nest or founded new colonies for themselves. There may well be no more where they came from.

One thing I miss seeing is swallows making the most of the feeding opportunity like they did every year when I was growing up in Brighton.

Jared Katooie · 20 July, 2010, 08:09:04 PM

No-one likes the ants then?

I was quite moved by their heroic quest to start new colonies the last time I witnessed it.

Admittedly, their quest seemed more noble once I was indoors...

vzzbux · 20 July, 2010, 08:30:10 PM

Squadrons of them today. Like the battle of Britain. Spits, Messies , Hurries, the lot.
Powdered the bastards that came from my garden and have a tin full of prisoners which will be interrogated tomorrow.

V

House of Usher · 20 July, 2010, 09:00:48 PM

Quote from: Jared Katooie on 20 July, 2010, 08:09:04 PM
No-one likes the ants then?

I do!

IAMTHESYSTEM · 20 July, 2010, 10:19:35 PM

We'll have to carry Ant spray guns every time we leave the house. Or flamethrowers.

Jared Katooie · 20 July, 2010, 10:42:39 PM

Murderers!

Stuzzle · 20 July, 2010, 11:23:57 PM

Tomorrow's Sun headline

"Flying Ant Seduced My Wife"

House of Usher · 26 July, 2011, 08:26:30 PM

Necropost! One year on...

I saw a single dead flying ant yesterday, and winged ants swarming out of a drain cover today. So far I've seen hardly any on the wing, and only from that one nest.

Looks like the ants are mating a week later this year than last year, at least in south Wales.

Anyone else seen breeder ants flying yet this year?

JOE SOAP · 26 July, 2011, 08:29:44 PM

I encountered swarms of them 2 weeks ago in Dublin. Cycling home they kept flyin' at me, I happened to look down and a queen was on my sleeve. Vile creatures and such bad flyers.