Bees / ants on flower !!

 

 

பூவினம் மாநாடு போடும் ! வண்டுகள் சங்கீதம் பாடும் !!

இது மணமிக்க மலரல்ல ! - பாகற்காய் பூ - இரண்டொரு எறும்புகளையும் காணலாம். ஒரு வண்டு பூவில் அமர்ந்து இருக்க, மற்றொன்று அருகில் பறந்து ரீங்காரமிடுகிறது !!

the fastest on earth is not Usain Bolt ... not Cheetah or Peregrine Falcon !!!

On that day in  Sept 1988, we witnessed the spectacle of a man turning around after passing approx 60m – then raising his hand and still finishing in 9.79 creating a new WR.  Ben Johnson, the Canadian sprinter was rescinded the medal disqualified for doping. 

Mites, along with ticks, are small arthropods belonging to the subclass Acari  and the class Arachnida. The scientific discipline devoted to the study of ticks and mites is called acarology. In soil ecosystems, mites are favored by high organic matter content and by moist conditions, wherein they actively engage in the fragmentation and mixing of organic matter.

Usain Bolt now is the fastest man on earth – holding both the 100M and 200M World records – he is the reigning Olympic champion in three events, the first man to win six Olympic gold medals in sprinting, and an eight-time World champion.  Even Usain Bolt,  cannot outpace greyhounds, cheetahs, or the pronghorn antelope, according to a light-hearted comparison of the extraordinary athleticism of humans and animals in the Veterinary Record. Often we have read that the fastest land animal is the Cheetah which has a recorded speed of 96–120 km/h (60–75 mph). The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest bird, with a speed of 389 km/h (242 mph).  The fastest animal in the sea is the Black marlin, which has a recorded speed of 130 km/h (80 mph).

Humans can run at a maximum speed of 23.4 miles per hour (37.6 kilometres/hour) or 10.4 metres per second, which gives them the edge over the Dromedary camel. Cheetah is much faster and there are many animals which run faster than the fastest man.  Most Quizzers would answer that Cheetah is the fastest animal on land – Scientists would say differently !

To them – insects too are animals ….the Australian tiger beetle could run at a speed of 171 body lengths every second. On the other hand, a cheetah can run at around 16 body lengths every second. However, both these speed demons pale in comparison to P. macropalpis. The tiny mite is only around the size of a sesame seed but it can travel an astounding 322 body lengths in a single second.  So, the fastest land animal is Southern California mite (Paratarsotomus macropalpis), according to a team of researchers from the Claremont Colleges.

It is not speed and distance parameters alone but the body length – the mite was recorded to be running at 322 body lengths per second; which is equivalent of Usain Bolt running at 1,300 miles per hour. The presumed title holder Cheetah by this yardstick moves at a measly 16 body lengths per second. Since the mite’s body size is smaller than a sesame seed, it’s unlikely that the mite could actually beat Usain Bolt, with his great stride, in a one-on-one race. 

“Both relative speed and stride frequency increase as animals get smaller,” Pomona College biologist Jonathan Wright, who led the team, said in a summary of the research. The research team used high-speed cameras to record the mites’ speed in the laboratory and in their natural environment. Extrapolated to the size of a human, the mite's speed is equivalent to a person running roughly 1300 miles per hour.  The mite is local to Southern California and is often found running along rocks or sidewalks. Although it was first identified in 1916, little is known about its habits or food sources.The mites also are adept at stopping and changing directions extremely quickly, attributes the researchers are investigating further for potential insights that may be relevant to bioengineering applications.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

10^th Sept. 2014.

celebrating Friendship day with butterfly on hand !!

Of the many days that have emerged in recent times – today is ‘Friendship Day’ and here is a photo of me and my friend !

 

Friendship Day is an informal holiday dedicated to celebrating friendship and the bond between friends. It’s observed on different dates around the world, but two main traditions dominate: The United Nations officially proclaimed 30 July as the International Day of Friendship in 2011. In the United States and several other countries (including India and the UAE), Friendship Day is popularly celebrated on the first Sunday of August. So today  Sunday, 2 August is Friendship day !! 

The Butterfly Effect  released in  2004  is an American science fiction thriller film written and directed by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber, starring Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart, Eric Stoltz, William Lee Scott and others.  The title refers to the butterfly effect. Kutcher plays 20-year-old college student Evan Treborn,  who experiences blackouts and memory loss throughout his childhood. In his later 20s, Evan finds he can travel back in time to inhabit his former self during those periods of blackout, with his adult mind inhabiting his younger body. He attempts to change the present by changing his past behaviors and set things right for himself and his friends, but there are unintended consequences for all.   

The film is built around the “butterfly effect” from chaos theory: tiny changes in initial conditions can lead to huge differences later (often illustrated by the Lorenz attractor, which looks like butterfly wings).   Critics were mostly negative, but audiences loved the concept; it made about $96.8 million on a $13 million budget and became a cult hit, spawning sequels and a TV series.   It’s often cited as a quintessential early 2000s “high concept” thriller: simple premise, big emotional stakes, and a brutal take on time travel.

 

Wait, later I learnt that the one pictured is not a Butterfly – but a giant silk moth (family Saturniidae).  The conclusion is based   on the wing shape, the striking white transverse bands, the snake-like "eye" markings near the forewing tips, and the small crescent-shaped eyespots on the hindwings, - and Web searches conclude it to be :  Atlas Moth 

Unlike butterflies, Atlas moths are remarkably placid. They are completely harmless—they cannot bite or sting.  Adults have no functional mouth, so they are not interested in feeding. During the day they tend to remain almost motionless to conserve energy.  

"A Gentle Giant on My Hand – The Atlas Moth (Attacus atlas), One of the World's Largest Moths" 

Regards – S Sampathkumar
2.8.2026 

Guardian of the Shore !! நண்டூறுது நரியூறுது .. .

 

The Guardian of the Shore    !!!   Are you around 50 years of age !!  - likely you have heard this song and seen the movie too !!!

 

நண்டூறுது நரியூறுது .. .. நண்டூறுது…….

நான் வளர்த்த செல்லக்கிளி - கண்ணில் ஆடுது

என் கண்ணில் ஆடுது – 

 

நாளுக்கு நாள் உழைத்தேன் நன்றியில்லை அங்கே

நல்லவன் வாழ்வதற்கு நியாயமில்லை இங்கே

ஏழைக்கு உலகம் என்று எழுதியவன் எங்கே…..

எடுப்பதை எடுத்தப்பின்தான் நீதி வரும் இங்கே…..

 

 

A tiny sentinel of the coast Crab (nandu in Tamil)  – this one was pictured at  Marina Beach, perfectly camouflaged against the sand. Built to run sideways, armed with powerful claws, and forever keeping the shoreline alive and clean.

 

Going by its shape of the carapace and the bluish-purple legs with reddish claw tips, this appears to be one of the common swimming crabs (family Portunidae), which are frequently seen along the Chennai coast. During low tide, they often emerge to forage and quickly disappear into the sand or dash towards the surf when disturbed.  

One fascinating fact is that although they seem fearless when facing you, their first instinct is usually to retreat. Raising the claws is more of a defensive display than an invitation to fight!  The low angle, with the crab looking straight at the camera, gives it a surprisingly alert and almost defiant expression. The bluish-purple tint on the legs and claws is especially attractive.     

•          Crabs are masters of sideways movement. Their legs are specially hinged to allow rapid sideways running, making them much faster than moving forward.

•          They are beach cleaners. Many crabs feed on dead fish, decaying plants and other organic matter, helping keep the shoreline clean.

•          Excellent engineers. Most beach crabs dig burrows in wet sand. These burrows provide protection from predators, the hot sun and dehydration.

•          Eyes on stalks. Notice the tiny eyes projecting from the shell. These movable stalks give the crab an almost panoramic view, helping it detect danger while remaining mostly hidden.

•          The greyish shell blends beautifully with the sand, while the bluish and reddish claws are characteristic of several marine crabs found along India's east coast.

•          They grow by shedding their shell. Since the hard shell cannot expand, a crab periodically moults, emerging with a soft new shell that hardens over the next few days.

 

In the song at the start -  "நண்டூறுது" literally refers to a crab crawling or scurrying, while "நரியூறுது" refers to a fox stealthily moving. In folk usage, such expressions evoke a sense of restlessness, playful movement, or subtle excitement rather than being taken literally. The lyricist  Kaviyarasu Kannadasan used  familiar sights from village life to paint an earthy, rhythmic picture.   

The song is from “Bhairavi”   film directed by M. Bhaskar, and produced by Kalaignanam, who also wrote the story and dialogues hit the screens in 1978. It starred Srikanth, Rajinikanth and Sripriya.  Perhaps the first film  featuring Rajini as the hero and he was mentioned as ‘Super Star’ at that time.  Kalaipuli Thanu was a distributor at that time and for the movie Bairavi,  35 ft cut out of the hero was kept before Plaza theatre – there was heavy advertisement through posters too  

This song  sung by TM Soundararajan, to the music of Isaignani Illayaraja was a big hit.

 
Interesting !
 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
4.7.2026

பூவில் வண்டு கூடும் கண்டு .. .. .......

 

பூவில் வண்டு கூடும் கண்டு பூவும் கண்கள் மூடும் ! .. ..

ராகம் ஜீவனாகும் நெஞ்சின் ஓசை தாளமாகும் !!

 

ராகதேவன்  இளையராஜா கிறங்க அடித்த (ஓடாத) காதல் ஓவியம் என்ற படப் பாடல்

leisure(eeeee)ly

 

height of vettithanam ! .. verithanam !!!  [ver "eee" thanam]

- can you read  the pattern on its wings !!

India is no land of snake charmers ....

Magudi was a film released in 1984 starring Nalini and Mohan with hit melodies of Illayaraja….. the other day, returning home in the MRTS (in the afternoon) – entered a person, sat in the middle of the compartment doorway – took out and sort of repaired his magudi ….those sitting nearby whispered that he might be having a snake inside that cloth bag and wondered what would happen, if it were to escape out …. !!. 

Magudi, also called Punji is a wind instrument.   It is  bottle gourd attached to a double cane pipe cut in reeds. While one of the pipes gives the basic tonic, which it produces in a constant drone, the other pipe is able to play the tune. This pipe has finger holes that can be stopped just as in a flute.

For long, we have to battle the notion of India being a Nation of snake charmers and Maharajas. To them, people capable of handling snakes would be roaming on roads with snakes in their bags !!.... snake charming is the practice of pretending to hypnotise a snake by playing instruments. A typical performance may also include handling the snakes or performing other seemingly dangerous acts, as well as other street performance staples, like juggling and sleight of hand.  We used to see some of them and occasionally hooded snakes and mongooses too; not any longer – the hisses have died down, no longer monkeys tied to ropes …  -   India is the biggest democracy – snake charmers do have a right to exist –  it is a great Nation with diverse culture.

Once in a while, we do read of snakes including poisonous ones getting caught and getting released in the wild. The expert catchers sometimes still use the pipe instrument (magudi) and herbs.  Whether snakes hear, dance and get hypnotised by music is debated.  There is the famous song ‘Nathar mudi mel irukkum…’ (the one adorning the head of Lord Siva) is a popular tamil song, which at times in sung in Carnatic concerts too.  It was hit in the film ThiruvarutSelvar starring Sivaji Ganesan as Saivaite saint Appar. 

In his Independence Day speech from the ramparts of historic Red Fort, Prime Minister Narendra Modiji outlined his vision of a "digital India" that could compete with the world, hailing its IT professionals for changing the country's image as a land of snake charmers.

In his Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the historic Red Fort, Modi said India had transformed itself because of its information technology outsourcing sector.  But more has to be done to get India digitally connected through the Internet and tap other technologies, he said. "Some 25 to 30 years ago, the world used to think we are a land of snake charmers and black magic. But our youth has surprised the world with its IT skills." "I dream of a digital India. It was once said railways connects India. Today I say IT connects India... I fully believe a digital India can compete with the world."  said Modiji, a tech-savvy politician who is immensely popular on Facebook and Twitter.  He added that "Our dream should be to see the 'Made in India' signs in every corner of the world."

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

18^th Sept. 2014.

Meet Vatta seyalalar Vandu Murugan !! (Vadivelu)

 

 

தாவரவியலில் வண்டு தெரியாதவர்கள் கூட இருக்கலாம் ! 

வட்ட செயலாளர் வக்கீல் வண்டு முருகனை தெரியாத தமிழன் இருக்க முடியாது ! 

Cryptocephalus, a genus of leaf beetle

a small insect - resilience - Sialkot ODI and an event that shook the Nation

 

Resilience -   the ability to adapt well and recover quickly from difficulties, trauma, or significant sources of stress learnt from a small insect. 

ஒரு கழுதை,  அதன் பின்னால் மற்றோரு கழுதை - கழுதைகளுக்கு பின்னால் நான் - எங்கள் பின்னால் தேசம் !! -  இது என்ன ??

 

This pic taken a few years ago on a rainy day - many of us feel n inconvenienced when it rains, when you find stagnant water !!  .. .. a little insect –  which could not  fly as its wings were  damp, raindrops falling like a bomb nearer – showed resilience, the fighting spirit of  never say die – not giving up attitude – survival instincts are stronger. 

To many of Cricket fans – it would be a news that Mohinder Amarnath, the gritty batsman allrounder, Vice-captain of famous World Cup 1983, did captain India in an ODI.  That was ODI no. 273 – 2nd  ODI against  Pakistan at Sialkot.  It was not exactly bonhomie. After the first Test in Lahore, which the home side had dominated, Gavaskar lashed out at the officiating, saying, "despite the best efforts of the Pakistan umpires to favour the home team, we have managed to draw the Test and that is a miracle. Before embarking upon the tour of Pakistan we expected close decisions, but what happened in the Lahore Test was pre-planned and predetermined."  At Sialkot at Jinnah Stadium, Indian Captain Mohinder Amarnath won the toss - Gavaskar sat the game out with an injury - and decided to bat.  India was 210/3 after 40 overs ~ a good score those days ..   Anshuman Gaekwad and Ghulam Parkar failed; Sandip Patil made 59;  Dilip Vengsarkar was all set to make his maiden century at 94 but came the unusual stoppage.  

From web search understand that the one featured here is ‘Assassin bug’ -    likely a species within the Rhynocoris genus, such as Rhynocoris iracundus. These insects are part of the Reduviidae family and the Harpactorinae subfamily.   Assassin bugs like Tapeinus fuscipennis are voracious predators that help control pest populations in various ecosystems.  They  are characterized by a thin necklike structure connecting the narrow head to the body. Members of the family are notable for their diverse predatory habits, and many use piercing-sucking mouthparts to inject enzymes that liquefy prey tissues. Most live outdoors and prey on other insects.  

Do you know or remember this case - Kehar Singh & Ors vs State (Delhi Admn.) decided by Apex Court on  3 August, 1988 pertaining to a tragic event that shook the Nation - it was a legal battle even when it was seemingly an open-and-shut case, it soon became obvious that every rule in the book would be explored by both sides, and unprecedented arguments and procedures used where necessary. All of 73 witnesses deposed for the prosecution during the 110 hearings spread over 247 days. The defence could only muster three witnesses. Nor did witnesses have an easy time. Every point was contested and every bit of evidence subjected to the minutest scrutiny.  

You may or may not like her – but certainly would feel very anguished by the way she was eliminated.  Indira Gandhi,  charismatic ‘Iron Lady’ of India, was assassinated on the morning of October, 31, 1984.   She was the Prime Minister of India on that bloody day too. The assassination was carried out by her ‘Sikh Bodyguards’ Satwant Singh and Beant Singh. The assassination was reportedly  the aftermath of the ‘Operation Blue Star’ carried out by the Indian Army at her behest.   The Indian Army’s June 1984 assault on the Golden Temple in Amritsar left the Sikh temple heavily damaged. Hundreds of people lost their lives and this included both the militants and the Army. However, what followed the assassination was brutal, the recuperations were massive. For the next four days, the country was engulfed in the fire of riots. The country’s capital bore the most of its brunt.

 
The second para :  - கழுதை an ingenuous attempt to teach ‘Assassination’ to students !!  (Ass + ass + I + Nation).  Do you find this post interesting ! – do leave your feedback !
 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
24.11.2025

 

Count the legs of a Spider !!!

 

இன்றைய கேள்வி :  சிலந்திக்கு [எட்டுகால்  பூச்சி! ]எவ்வளவு கால்கள் ??!!!

How many legs does a Spider have ?!?!

Dung Beetle !!! ~ சாணி வண்டு

 

In a recent visit to Viralimalai, on the steps saw this insect – trying to carry a load perhaps beyond its weight !! – it was a Dung Beetle !! 

Dung beetles are beetles that feed on feces. All species of dung beetle belong to the superfamily Scarabaeoidea, most of them to the subfamilies Scarabaeinae and Aphodiinae of the family Scarabaeidae (scarab beetles).  

Dung beetles live in many habitats, including desert, grasslands and savannas, farmlands, and native and planted forests. They are highly influenced by the environmental context,  and do not prefer extremely cold or dry weather. They are found on all continents except Antarctica. They eat the dung of herbivores and omnivores, and also feed on mushrooms and decaying leaves and fruits.  

In Tamil, a dung beetle is  சாணி வண்டு (sāṇi vaṇṭu).  It is also sometimes referred to as "முட்டைப்புழுவைச் சாணத்தில் வளரவிடும் வண்டு வகை" 

The following sequence of images shows a beetle rolling a dung ball, orienting itself prior to going:  beetle climbs onto the ball; starts to turn around; beetle continues turning around; rolls the ball with its hind legs. 

The amazing thing is – ‘Dung beetle can carry’ (or, more accurately, pull or push) loads far exceeding its own weight. It is considered the strongest animal on Earth relative to its body weight. Specifically, the male Onthophagus taurus dung beetle can pull a staggering 1,141 times its own body weight. This incredible feat is the equivalent of a human pulling six fully loaded double-decker buses.  This immense strength is attributable to its small size as also their muscles attached to their exoskeleton.

 

Here is a short video of Dung beetle taken at Viralimalai footsteps !

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
1.11.2025

Red Dragonfly ! A living flash of light, he flew !!

 

Came out clear plates of sapphire mail; He dried his wings: like gauze they grew;

Thro’ crofts and pastures wet with dew ; A living flash of light he flew.

 

.. .. ..   Alfred Lord Tennyson –

*see it up and close*- Red Dragonfly is rare !!

 

the wing patterns of a dragonfly !!!

Identify this !!

 

Our school days were lost without our understanding many things – remember this English poem of William Wordsworth (1770 – 1850), an English romantic poet whose magnum opus is considered to be ‘the Prelude’ : this was ‘butterfly’ 

I'VE watched you now a full half-hour;

Self-poised upon that yellow flower

.. .. .. ..

I know not if you sleep or feed.

How motionless!--not frozen seas 

The opening lines  reveals his apparent entrancement.  It  perhaps was no poem on a simple butterfly, but more of what it could represent ! It's fragile, delicate, short lifespan and every moment could be it's last, with all the "predators" out there.  Though we take solace planning longer things, our life too is fragile… 

Not as attractive is the one that we see generally when it is cloudy and about to rain – a  dragonfly,  an insect belonging to the order Odonata, having hindwing broader than front wing. Adult dragonflies are characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, sometimes with coloured patches and an elongated body. Dragonflies are agile fliers, while damselflies have a weaker, fluttery flight.  Have seen blue, green and black dragonflies – and rare  red ones too. 

Dragonflies are predators, both in their aquatic larval stage, when they are known as nymphs or naiads, and as adults. Several years of their lives are spent as nymphs living in fresh water; the adults may be on the wing for just a few days or weeks. Found nearer water bodies, they  have a uniquely complex mode of reproduction involving indirect insemination, delayed fertilization, and sperm competition.   Adult  dragonflies eat other insects and can consume hundreds of mosquitoes in one day! They are valued predators, since they help control populations of harmful insects. Dragonflies are usually found around lakes, ponds, streams and wetlands because their larvae, known as "nymphs", are aquatic. Adult dragonflies do not bite or sting humans, though nymphs are capable of delivering a painful but harmless bite. 

The wings are unique,  not flat, but deliberately shaped. The grooves on the surface create tiny cyclones on the upper surface during flight, creating substantial lift. Dragonfly wings possess great stability and high load-bearing capacity during flapping flight, glide, and hover. Scientists have been intrigued by them and have carried out research for biomimetic applications. 

The wings of dragonflies are mainly composed of veins and membranes, a typical nanocomposite material. The veins and membranes have a complex design within the wing that give rise to whole-wing characteristics which result in dragonflies being supremely versatile, maneuverable fliers. The wing structure, especially corrugation, on dragonflies is believed to enhance aerodynamic performance. Dragonflies can move and rotate each of their four wings independently. Thanks to this unique ability, these insects can fly backwards, up and down. They can turn on a dime and can hover, all contributing to their great flying abilities. 

There are a number of key structures in the wing which contribute to the manner in which it bends in flight and therefore help to facilitate the wing’s aerodynamic properties.   The vein structure of the dragonfly has an optimum shape which is adapted to the forces acting at the location of the vein. The leading edge consists primarily of rectangular frames whereas the trailing surface is largely formed of hexagons and other polygons with more than four sides, which guarantee wing stability against loading.     

If you are wondering what the photo at the start represents – it is a dragonfly sitting on a wire, and only its wings are fully visible !!

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
30.8.2025 

buzzing bee and flower

 

பூவில் வண்டு கூடும் கண்டு - பூவும் கண்கள் மூடும் !
பூவினம் மாநாடு போடும் - வண்டுகள் சங்கீதம் பாடும்

Chameleon

 

Chameleons mostly live in the rain forests; the colour of their skin helps them blend in with their habitats. Chameleons that hang out in plants are usually green.

grasshopper !! ?? !!

 

Arthropod - an insect, close relative of a grasshopper !!

dragonflies !! - rain coming !!

 

Oh .. dragonflies .. .. taken somewhere in the month of Sept 2021

White Sanku Pushpam & sawfly

 

 

Nature has its wonders !  .. .. there are so many species – all surviving with some green cover.  Here is one found on a sangu pushpam (Clitoria Ternatea)

Hymenoptera is a large order of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. Over 150,000 living species of Hymenoptera have been described, in addition to over 2,000 extinct ones.

Regards - S Sampathkumar

6.4.2025

White bug on Green leaf !!

 

Leap in Exultation … .. .. .. and flying ants !!

Leap in Exultation   … .. .. .. and flying !!  (subject matter of this post)

 

A century in Cricket  - when I started watching Cricket in mid 1970s, Sunil Gavaskar would grind the bowlers and make one with exquisite straight drives; after almost a decade of initiation into ODI, came the first century in ODI, that epic 175 against Zimbabwe. 

Then came one by Krish Srikkanth, Mohinder Amarnath, Ravi Shastri … .. centuries were rare but now Virat Kohli has 50; Sachin Tendulkar 49; Rohit Sharma 31; Sourav Ganguly 22;  Shikhar Dhawan 17; Virender Sehwag 15; Yuvraj Singh 14; Rahul Dravid 12 & Gautam Gambhir 11 (the ones above 10) 

A century in a 120 ball game obviously is much much tougher.  That list too has a dozen,  Suresh Raina made in Gros Iselt way back in May 2010; then it was Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav,  Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Suryakumar Yadav, Shubman Gill, Yashaswi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suryakumar Yadav, Rohit Sharma, Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Sanju Samson,   & .. ..   Tilak Varma. 

The tall - Namboori Thakur Tilak Varma, resembles Telugu hero, and at 22 years of age has become India’s second youngest centurion – first being Yashasvi Jaiswal – made a ton in just 51 balls.  He shared  a 107-run second-wicket stand with Abhishek Sharma, and a 58-run fifth-wicket partnership with Rinku Singh, in which Tilak contributed 45.  At Centurion, sixers were flying from the bats of Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma.  As Sanju fell for a nought, Tilak walked in and took the attack to South Africa posting a huge total. Tilak, though, paced his innings superbly and ensured that India got up to 219.    

In T20 Cricket, no total is good enough and the chase was on in right earnest.  Arshdeep bowled the first over and the second was to be bowled by Hardik Pandya but Umpires stopped the game for a strange reason – ‘flying ants’ !!! 

"Flying ants”  (eesal)  are commonly seen after rain because they are looking for mates and places to start new colonies. This phase is called nuptial flight, and it's when virgin queens take flight to mate with males. Flying ants are most likely to appear after rain, when the weather is warm, humid, and windy.  They are called - Patingas or Parwana or Eeyal or Eesal  

 

By description they are ants with wings !!   what we often see are female black garden ants, marching around collecting food. But during summer, winged males and new queens of the same species take flight!  The ants take to the skies so that queens can mate with males from different colonies, and set up new nests of their own.  For a swarm of ants to occur, conditions must be just right – they’re usually triggered by hot and humid weather in July or August. The reason the ants appear in such big numbers is that it helps protects them from predators. Flying all together all at once also gives them a much better chance of finding mates. 

In 2018, flying ants invaded the court at Wimbledon, distracting tennis players and making news headlines around the world!  The bigger ones are the queens – they’re up to 15mm in length. After mating, queens chew off their wings and crawl around looking for a place to dig a new nest.  Nuptial flight is an important phase in the reproduction of most ant, termite, and some bee species. A mature ant colony seasonally produces winged virgin queens and males, called alates. Unfertilized eggs develop into males. Fertilized eggs usually develop into wingless, sterile workers, but may develop into virgin queens if the larvae receive special attention. Typically the virgin queens and males first scatter to ensure outcrossing.  Queens often try to escape the males, allowing only the fastest and the fittest males to mate.  The males have evolved for the single purpose of inseminating the queen and dies.     

It was flying ants that stopped play at Centurion for a while.  It is not the first time ! - a South Africa v Sri Lanka fixture, bees decided to make an appearance. With Sri Lanka tottering at 194 for 8 in a must-win game against a charged South African attack, there was calm, laughter, and a bit of a lie down for 9 and 10, Isuru Udana and Suranga Lakmal in the 48th over. The delay only lasted a few minutes though, the polite Durham bees seeing themselves off unlike the ones in Johannesburg in 2017, that had demanded expert intervention.

 

Interesting !
 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
14.11.2024