Ant Nuptial Flight

A synchronized mating event in which winged, sexually mature male and female ants from many colonies of the same species take to the air simultaneously, typically triggered by a specific combination of temperature, humidity and time after rain, to mate on the wing before the newly mated queens land, shed their wings, and attempt to found new colonies. The mass, synchronized timing across an entire region increases the odds that a queen mates with a male from a different colony and helps swamp predators that gather to feed on the sudden abundance of flying ants.