Writing

Notes on ant nuptial flights: when they happen, what sets them off, and where the popular version of the story parts company with the research.

The ant flight timetable: who flies at dawn, who flies at nine at night

Nuptial flights don't all happen at midday. Some genera go up in the first minute of daylight, one goes at three in the morning, and one can't decide and does both ends of the day.Read →

Ants don't read the barometer

Everyone knows ants swarm when the pressure drops. In the largest study of UK flying ants ever done, barometric pressure had no measurable effect at all. Temperature and wind did.Read →

Flying ants in your house? Here's what's actually happening

Winged ants indoors in July aren't an infestation. It's a nuptial flight, they're harmless, and they'll be gone by evening. What they are, why they came in, and why you don't need to spray anything.Read →