It won’t be long before the first swarms of flying black ants appear, splattering windscreens and getting up noses. It all depends on the weather — the ants lie underground waiting for the weather to turn hot and muggy after a downpour of rain, then they lift off.
In many ways ants are barometers of the weather because they are capable of sensing changing conditions. As folklore says: “If ants their walls do frequent build,/ Rain will from the clouds be spilled.”
Another saying warns that if ants are more active than usual, that is a sign of approaching rain.
A fascinating study showed that leaf-cutting ants in the rainforests of Central America are especially alert to imminent rain. These are tiny ants that carry