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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps » Ants (Formicoidea) » Ants (Formicidae) » Formicinae » Lasiini » Citronella Ants (Lasius) » Subgenus Cautolasius (Lasius Subgenus Cautolasius)
Photo#1131496
Mass emergence... flying ants? - Lasius
Copyright © 2015 Kim Wood

Mass emergence... flying ants? - Lasius
Cottage Grove, Dane County, Wisconsin, USA
August 30, 2015
Size: 1/4" - adults
I know these pictures are horrible. Sorry. But these guys came out in a seeming mass emergence. 1000s of them. Small groups (2-5" wide) All over our lawn in one day. Every foot to a few feet. Clumps of them with a bunch of adults (?) with wings and 100s of the tiny ones without wings. The next day there were gone. No remnant what so ever that they were ever there. We've never seen this before, although if it happens in one afternoon, it's possible we just never noticed. Any idea what would do this?

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Mass emergence... flying ants? - Lasius Mass emergence... flying ants? - Lasius
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Contributed by Kim Wood on 1 September, 2015 - 8:55am
Last updated 22 November, 2015 - 10:59am

Moved
Moved from Ants.
… James C. Trager, 22 November, 2015 - 10:59am login or register to post comments

Moved
Moved from ID Request.
… v belov, 27 September, 2015 - 3:55pm login or register to post comments

Nuptial flight
Ant reproductives (tended by wingless workers) are flying off to mate and found new colonies.
… Ken Wolgemuth, 1 September, 2015 - 9:46am login or register to post comments

 
New colonies
So that would be why we have about 1000 little ant hills on our 5 acre property every year? :)
Thank you for the response.
… Kim Wood, 1 September, 2015 - 9:51am login or register to post comments

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