nuptial flight

zoology

Also known as: mating flight

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July 1, 2026

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A nuptial flight, also known as a wedding flight, is a crucial event in the life cycle of many social insects, such as bees, ants, and termites. This is the flight of sexually mature insects where mating takes place, and it typically precedes the formation of a new colony.12

During this flight, winged reproductive individuals, called alates, emerge from their parent nest. This emergence is often triggered by specific environmental conditions like high humidity and temperature. After mating, which may occur during the flight or upon landing, the female sheds her wings and seeks a suitable location to establish a new nest. This dispersal flight is essential for the species' reproduction and the establishment of new colonies.3

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evolution
Kin selection and reciprocal altruism
…is to engage in the nuptial flight during which one of them fertilizes a new queen. Other eggs laid by queen bees are fertilized and develop into females, the large majority of which are workers. Some social insects, such as the stingless Meliponinae bees, with hundreds of species across the…
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…is to engage in the nuptial flight during which one of them fertilizes a new queen. Other eggs laid by queen bees are fertilized and develop into females, the large majority of which are workers. Some social insects, such as the stingless Meliponinae bees, with hundreds of species across the…
Read More

termite
Swarming
…commonly called a nuptial or mating flight, is simply dispersal. Mating occurs after the flight. Swarming from many colonies occurs simultaneously in a given area and may be synchronized closely in areas separated by hundreds of miles. An advantage of synchronization might be intercolony mating.
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…commonly called a nuptial or mating flight, is simply dispersal. Mating occurs after the flight. Swarming from many colonies occurs simultaneously in a given area and may be synchronized closely in areas separated by hundreds of miles. An advantage of synchronization might be intercolony mating.
Read More