Swarm of flying ants so large it can be seen from space spotted over London and the south coast

The Met Office’s weather radar picked up the cloud of ants, around 50 miles wide
Met Office radar image of flying ants over London and the south coast Credit: Met Office

A swarm of flying ants so large it can be seen from space has been spotted over parts of London the south-east coast. The Met Office’s weather radar picked up the cloud of ants, around 50 miles wide, over Kent and Sussex. Smaller swarms can be seen over London.

A spokesman at the Met Office said there are likely “thousands” of ants within the swarm.

Flying ants seen on the grass at Wimbledon

  • Flying ant day happens when males and new queens leave the nest to mate, with many ant colonies doing so on the same day

  • According to the Royal Society of Biology, there is not always one flying ant day, but as many as 96% of days between June and September flying ants are spotted.