Cloudy, with a chance of f lying ants
And here is the weather forecast...
HUGE swarms of flying ants that descended on England’s south coast were mistaken for clouds of rain by satellites.
The Met Office’s radar captured what it described as ‘insect clutter’ over the counties of hampshire, West Sussex and Dorset.
The bizarre recordings were made between 8am and 11am on Wednesday.
Clouds of the insects were shown moving across the country on the interactive weather map.
BBC weather presenter Simon King tweeted an image of the ‘incredible’ phenomenon. he said: ‘We knew it was dry in the south of England, and yet the radar was showing this very light precipitation across the South.
‘You can tell it’s not rainfall because it has that eerie look to it. it doesn’t quite match what rainfall looks like.
‘These ants are a particular size and they are probably hovering at a certain height in the atmosphere towards the base of a cloud, and the sheer number of them would suggest there’s enough for the radar systems to pick up.’
A Met Office spokesman said the ants showed up on their image as showers of rain because ‘the radar thinks the beams are hitting raindrops, not ants’.
Wednesday was annual ‘ Flying Ant Day’ – where millions of them take to the sky for the ‘nuptial flight’ phase of the insect’s reproductive cycle.
insect expert professor Adam hart, of the University of Gloucestershire, said the mating ritual had been triggered by the weather in the south of England. Despite the term ‘ Flying Ant Day’ the ritual can last for several weeks throughout July and August, depending on the weather conditions. The insects typically take to the skies when rainfall is followed by hot, humid weather. professor hart said people should be welcoming of one of the ‘greatest spectacles of nature’, adding: ‘Don’t kill flying ants...enjoy them!’ While the suggestion of rain on Wednesday may have been incorrect, real rain clouds will likely be picked up by the satellites in coming days.
Most of the UK is expected to experience heavy rain from today – especially in the North and West.