Ugh

[harrydog10]

Anybody else got zillions of flying ants.  There everywhere, outside. Make me shudder

[bitsnknots]

We had them last Sunday.  Apparently, some of them have wings so they can fly off and breed and then they die off then.  They're not nice though.  We've had them in the past were the road was literally moving there were that many of them.

[ed_blackadder_1]

Only seen a few this year usually there are loads, needs to be warm or hot for them to swarm. The swallows and house martins love them.

[bitsnknots]

We tend not to get swallows or house martins round here.

[harrydog10]

I saw millions last week too.  The front lawn looked like it was moving, horrible things.  They do seem to die off quickly though.

[right-then-petal]

Boiling  Water In A Watering Can,Or They Have A Great Fly Spray £1= Shop

[peteryola]

We've had two flying ant instances already this summer in Epsom; one earlier this week and one about three weekends ago.  Last year there were six instances across the summer...

[cookiecookuk]

we have a path in our garden and at 2.30pm it was clear and at 4pm all along the path was heaving with flying ants about 8 different masses of them they dissapear quickly with a kettle of water and as someone has said it is all to do with the female virgin ants swarming to make there own coloneys and as soon as they land in the right place there wings drop of .and they become queen.

[merc1_clocks]

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@cookiecookuk wrote:

we have a path in our garden and at 2.30pm it was clear and at 4pm all along the path was heaving with flying ants about 8 different masses of them they dissapear quickly with a kettle of water and as someone has said it is all to do with the female virgin ants swarming to make there own coloneys and as soon as they land in the right place there wings drop of .and they become queen.

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Gord cookie...sounds like something from a horror movie 

I'm glad I live ' high up '...I think a lot of critters can't survive the cold here 

[dark_castle1]

Och come on merc ! flying ants are nowt compared to a swarm of hungry Scottish midges  

[peteryola]

I'll see your midges and raise you being surrounded by a swarm of bees on the South Downs last weekend; literally hundreds appearing out of nowhere, buzzing past us on all sides, all gone on their way in the space of 20 - 30 seconds.

[merc1_clocks]

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@dark_castle1 wrote:

Och come on merc ! flying ants are nowt compared to a swarm of hungry Scottish midges  

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Very true DC  LOL

[merc1_clocks]

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@peteryola wrote:

I'll see your midges and raise you being surrounded by a swarm of bees on the South Downs last weekend; literally hundreds appearing out of nowhere, buzzing past us on all sides, all gone on their way in the space of 20 - 30 seconds.

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I don't mind if they're moving Peter...as long as they don't take a fancy to me, & decide to land 

[otherego]

Come, now. Such ingratitude. It's all part of Nature's bounty.

http://bertc.com/subfive/recipes/friedbug.htm

For those who dislike clicking on links, here's an extract:

...excited children catch them in mid-flight, pluck off the wings, and gulp them down without a second thought. To prepare these crunchy delights, heat a pan and fry the ants dry. They produce a lot of oil from their bodies. Remove them from the pan, and dry in the sun or a low oven. Remove the wings by winnowing or picking them out and store until ready to eat.

Brings back happy memories from long ago and far away of sitting in a rural bar on a hot, rainy night, all of us suitably "refreshed." A swarm of flying ants became bar snacks - grab a handful out of the air, bung on a plate and serve. Catch, de-wing and devour. I wasn't quite refreshed enough to participate, but those who did pronounced the treats surprisingly fatty (and crunchy, in the case of the really refreshed ones who didn't bother de-winging their snacks.)

A brave soul who swallowed without chewing also described his snack as "tickly on the way down."

[harrydog10]

OMG thats disgusting enough to put you off your Sunday lunch.  But please, if its to you taste, you carry on, knock yourself out. 

[dark_castle1]

the thing is peter Scottish midges do not fly past ! They land and devour you where you stand and no matter what you do they will not go until they have had their fill  .