Unwanted Halloween Guests

I took this picture to remind myself to carve the pumpkins at the last possible minute for Halloween 2011. I carved the pumpkins on Saturday and when I went to light the candles on Sunday evening the ants were setting up for their Halloween dinner party and just waiting for the ambient candle light before they started eating. Or maybe they weren't waiting. I have no idea what they were doing in the pumpkins only that the pumpkins were on the porch and that means the ants were on the porch which is very close to the front door and I'm hoping the close-to-freezing overnight temps this week kill them because even though they are tiny I don't want them in the house.

They're probably already in the house, aren't they?

Ants

Every spring the carpenter ants start trying to take over my house. It's quite annoying, especially when someone - who shall remain nameless - likes to leave glasses that have held juice just sitting out on the kitchen counter without rinsing them (and why not put them in the dishwasher that is right there?). Used juice glasses are like crack for ants. And they're those big black ants that are so fat you can see every individual section of their body and that makes them look extra creepy and they seem to have an innate defensive mechanism because they will RUN when a paper towel is heading in their direction.

They don't really seem to learn, though. If you leave the smushed-up carcass of one lying around as a lesson to the others they do not heed it or even try to drag the body away for a proper burial. Even if they show up together it's every ant for themselves when the killing starts. You always hear about how ants are so great at working together; but, I'm telling you, they don't live up to their PR in my kitchen.

This is from a report my son did in the 2nd grade: 1. Did you know army ants live in tropical jungles because they do. 2. A lot of ants together is so strong they can beat a black beetle. 3. And speaking of strong, it takes only two ants to lift one fat caterpillar.

Does that mean that one ant could lift a thin caterpillar?