Dragonflies swarm at Misquamicut State Beach in Rhode Island
Helene Dombrowski’s video shows the swarms of insects at Misquamicut State Beach on Saturday. She estimated there were “hundreds” when she arrived around 9:30 a.m. and “millions” by 12:45 p.m.
Helene Dombrowski about Storyful
Although humidity in the Boston area has calmed down considerably in recent days, those who came to enjoy the weather on Monday evening were faced with an insect-filled nightmare.
Last Monday, hundreds of flying ants buzzed through the air, covering streets, cars and houses and leaving behind scattered carcasses.
The phenomenon caused chaos for some people by trapping them in their homes, blocking views on the streets and hindering privacy. On Reddit, it was called the ant apocalypse.
Why were there so many ants in Boston?
The ant flight observed in Boston on Monday is called a nuptial flight, according to Emily Stolarski of Mass Wildlife, an event during the breeding season when winged females and males leave their colonies. After mating in flight, the female ants land to start new colonies, but the male ants stay behind and die.
Colonies can consist of a few dozen to several million ants, meaning the total number of insects in the sky on Monday night could easily have been in the millions.
More about the weather: Will August stay this cool? This is what AccuWeather’s long-term forecast says
Unfortunately for nature lovers, there is no predicted schedule for the ants’ nuptial flights, but Stolarski explained that they typically occur in warmer weather.
“The nuptial flight typically occurs in the summer when the weather is hot and humid. The warmth makes flying easier and freshly fallen rain softens the ground so that the mated queens can dig new nests,” Stolarski said.
The good weather on Monday prompted the ants to take off on their flight. The swarm lasted only a few hours, which Stolarski says is typical for nuptial flights of ants.
