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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Flying ants: Swarms appear on weather map as 'rain' | Flying ants: Swarms appear on weather map as 'rain' |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Huge swarms of flying ants in the south of England have appeared on a weather forecast map looking like rain. | Huge swarms of flying ants in the south of England have appeared on a weather forecast map looking like rain. |
| Large numbers of what the Met Office described as "insect clutter" were recorded on radar systems between 8:00 and 11:00 BST. | Large numbers of what the Met Office described as "insect clutter" were recorded on radar systems between 8:00 and 11:00 BST. |
| Clouds of the insects were shown moving from south Hampshire to west Sussex on the interactive weather map. | Clouds of the insects were shown moving from south Hampshire to west Sussex on the interactive weather map. |
| BBC weather presenter Simon King tweeted an image of what he described as the "incredible" phenomenon earlier. | BBC weather presenter Simon King tweeted an image of what he described as the "incredible" phenomenon earlier. |
| Mr King said: "We knew it was dry in the south of England, and yet the radar was showing this very light precipitation across the south. | Mr King said: "We knew it was dry in the south of England, and yet the radar was showing this very light precipitation across the south. |
| "You can tell it's not rainfall because it has that eerie look to it. It doesn't quite match what rainfall looks like. | "You can tell it's not rainfall because it has that eerie look to it. It doesn't quite match what rainfall looks like. |
| "These ants are a particular size and they are probably hovering at a certain height in the atmosphere towards the base of a cloud, and the sheer number of them would suggest there's enough for the radar systems to pick up." | "These ants are a particular size and they are probably hovering at a certain height in the atmosphere towards the base of a cloud, and the sheer number of them would suggest there's enough for the radar systems to pick up." |
| Bournemouth, Brighton and Winchester are some of the areas where residents could end up facing an insect invasion. | Bournemouth, Brighton and Winchester are some of the areas where residents could end up facing an insect invasion. |
| Researchers have suggested that there isn't necessarily such a thing as a Flying Ant Day. | Researchers have suggested that there isn't necessarily such a thing as a Flying Ant Day. |
| But a study of the insects found they fly somewhere in the UK on 96% of days between the start of June and the start of September. | But a study of the insects found they fly somewhere in the UK on 96% of days between the start of June and the start of September. |
| That movement is caused by potential new female queens and male ants embarking on a mating flight. | That movement is caused by potential new female queens and male ants embarking on a mating flight. |
| Mr King said it was the biggest swarm of insects he had seen in the UK, and was a more common sight in parts of the United States. | Mr King said it was the biggest swarm of insects he had seen in the UK, and was a more common sight in parts of the United States. |
| He added: "For it to actually to appear on the radar imagery, that's something certainly incredible, and I just feel sorry for all the people who have to experience those flying ants." | He added: "For it to actually to appear on the radar imagery, that's something certainly incredible, and I just feel sorry for all the people who have to experience those flying ants." |
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| Mr King's tweet got some people ducking for cover. | |
| Geoffers wrote: "Nooooooooooo! I HATE flying ant day, it's disgusting!" | |
| It made Dreadders "feel rather queasy" while David Green "got bitten by one putting up the parasol in the garden this morning". | |
| But Martyn Jones said: "We won't be overrun, other animals will gorge on them so please don't worry about ants." | |
| Insect expert Prof Adam Hart said people should be welcoming one of the "great spectacles of nature". | Insect expert Prof Adam Hart said people should be welcoming one of the "great spectacles of nature". |
| He said: "Ants are incredibly important in the ecosystem. | He said: "Ants are incredibly important in the ecosystem. |
| "As predators they keep on top of other insects and as prey (especially flying ants) they feed many birds and mammals. | "As predators they keep on top of other insects and as prey (especially flying ants) they feed many birds and mammals. |
| "Their nest digging helps to aerate and structure soil as well as acting to cycle nutrients. | "Their nest digging helps to aerate and structure soil as well as acting to cycle nutrients. |
| "Thousands of people have helped to make sure the emergence of flying ants, forecasting the weather and evading hungry gulls, can be celebrated as a highly visible sign of these vital ecosystem engineers." | "Thousands of people have helped to make sure the emergence of flying ants, forecasting the weather and evading hungry gulls, can be celebrated as a highly visible sign of these vital ecosystem engineers." |