not shown: the foolhardy ones that crawled into my shirt.
What is that mess on the lab door?
This is a swarm of the alate stage of the the Eastern subterranean termite. After yesterday's rain, the mature reproductive termites have taken to the air in an attempt to find a mate. Once mated, the king and queen will fly off and attempt to find a nest site. Once there, they will shed their wings, and the queen will start laying eggs that will grow into termite workers and soldiers.
There's nothing like the phrase, "Hey, you wanna see a swarm of X" to get a bunch of entomologists running around taking pictures at great personal peril. Not so much that the termites are dangerous, but they have a nasty tendency to land in your hair and crawl up inside your clothing.
This is a swarm of the alate stage of the the Eastern subterranean termite. After yesterday's rain, the mature reproductive termites have taken to the air in an attempt to find a mate. Once mated, the king and queen will fly off and attempt to find a nest site. Once there, they will shed their wings, and the queen will start laying eggs that will grow into termite workers and soldiers.
There's nothing like the phrase, "Hey, you wanna see a swarm of X" to get a bunch of entomologists running around taking pictures at great personal peril. Not so much that the termites are dangerous, but they have a nasty tendency to land in your hair and crawl up inside your clothing.