Flying Ants

All ant species live in colonies established by fertile females, or queens and although the majority of ants are wingless, all ant species produce winged ants. An ant colony needs several years to grow from when it is started to the point reproductive ants with wings are developed. The colony needs to produce several thousand worker ants before beginning to breed sexually mature ants with wings. There can be thousands of winged ants in one established colony.

Around this time of year when the humidity is high and the rains come, the winged reproductive males and winged females take flight in great swarms or mating arenas. Winged reproductive male and female ants emerge from the colony in large swarms usually following a day of heavy rain during the monsoon season. Such swarming behavior is usually synchronized by other nearby colonies so large numbers of winged ants suddenly appear. All mating for the species takes place, often over the course of a single day. They mate in the air, the males die and the mated females disperse to attempt establishing a new colony.

The flying ant often displays a behavior known as “hilltopping”. They swarm around the tallest object of the landscape like a tree or chimney. The females are much larger than the males, and they will try to dip and dodge the males, only allowing the fastest and fittest males to deposit their sperm. A queen will mate with several males, but males only mate with one female, if they are lucky. Most of these flying ants die without mating, many killed by worker ants of other species and other, various predators.