Spring comes earlier every year. We've had a whole week of warm weather with highs in the mid to high 60s and lows in the 40s to 50s, culminating in this afternoon, when temperatures reached a high of 73 degrees. Because Prenolepis imparis flies predictably on the first day of the year when temperatures surpass 70 degrees, today's flight was expected, even though in the past few years I have not seen flights until March. This virgin female alate emerged in a rock garden from underneath a dead leaf, below which the workers had excavated an enlarged nest entrance and were gathering to chaperone other winged females before their flight. I saw no males coming from this particular nest entrance, but they were flying everywhere around the neighborhood. In the rock garden where I found this female, I found them gathering in large numbers near various shrubs, weaving their way through the foliage despite strong winds.