National flying ant day visible on the rain radar

Laura Tobin from Good Morning Britain explains how the rain radar system picked up the flying ants

On Sunday 12th July 2020 many people across the UK noticed hundreds of flying ants flying in the sky. In facts there were millions of flying ants, so many that they were picked up by weather radars, it looked like rain was falling but it was actually plumes of ants flying!

It’s commonly known as "Flying Ant Day" but it's also know as "nuptial flight".

It happens when the virgin queens leave their colony, they mate with male ants-who die shortly after. The fertilised female then lands and chews off the males wings and then starts a new colony.

The weather plays a key role in triggering ants to fly. The temperature needs to be over 13ºC. Above 25ºC is the perfect temperature where the wind speed is less than 14 mph.

Seagulls love flying ants day as they feast on the insects. A bit like picking them out of the sky like M&M's. However, it's believed they get affected by the acid in the ants making them effectively drunk!