Tiny piles of dirt have been catching my eye again, this time in the fields at Cosmeston. I wasn’t entirely sure about my identification of these but my records have now been confirmed. Meet Lasius flavus, the Yellow meadow ant.

You may have it living in your garden, pushing up piles of soil in your lawn, very good for soil aeration. I can’t help but wonder whether these tiny beasties are the source of the saying ‘ants in your pants’, as I can imagine that if you happen to sit on one of their nests in a meadow, the annoyed ants might well infiltrate your underwear in order to move you along.