What is Flying Ant Day and when will it be this year?
Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Sign up for regular updates of events happening in Wales Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice  We all know it's coming, that day when it's best to shut your windows tight - even if the weather's really hot. Yet few of us seem to know when it actually falls, just that some date, or more accurately a range of dates, in July will be described as Flying Ant Day. It's that time when swarms of the titular insects emerge from their nests and take to the skies in order to seek out other ants with which to mate. Read more: 50 mile swarm of flying ants picked up by weather radar on south east coast  Known as the 'nuptual flight', it's an important phase in the reproduction of the species, with both the males and virgin queens - usually much larger in size - pairing off before landing to start a new colony elsewhere. And the reason for such a large number of flying ants all appearing together over such a short space of time is to increase the chances of that reproduction being successful. That said, it's not just a 24-hour period in which all this happens. Actually, the phenomenon often builds over a period of days. But the culmination - when the biggest number of insects are airborne - is what we refer to as Flying Ant Day and it usually takes place in the latter half of this month. So, providing the weather is good, the third week of July is always a good bet as to when it'll happen in 2021 - it's also when you'll see seagulls behaving very oddly as they like to feast on the ants and get 'drunk' on an acid they produce. Subscribe to the WalesOnline newsletter today You can now get all of the need-to-know news sent straight to your inbox by signing up for our free WalesOnline newsletter. It takes just seconds to subscribe - simply click here, enter your email address and follow the instructions. After all, they're actually good for the outdoors, helping to aerate soil, cycle nutrients, improve garden fertility and control pests. Flying ants also provide a vital food resource for many species of birds, particularly swifts and gulls.