Flood cleanup
OR
Ants!

carpenter ant nest

carpenter ant nest

Three weeks ago we had some major flooding in Spencer. Hundreds of people in town were forced to evacuate their homes, and some might have to rebuild completely. Fortunately, we were not affected quite as much, since we are not so close to the White River, and Dave and Ellen made the prudent choice of building on higher ground. Nevertheless, our creek did flood a lot, and there is still a lot of cleanup to be done in the yard. (I posted pictures of the flood and aftermath in our albums).

Carpenter ant carrying something

Carpenter ant carrying something (not sure what). Note that whatever it is carrying is about as big as the ant.

Today I finally got around to cutting up the tree that had fallen during the flood, and a couple other ones that fell yesterday during another storm. I briefly contemplated putting the wood onto the wood rack, but then decided not to, since I knew it was not very good wood. (I’m not sure what kind, but I am guessing either willow, sycamore, or tulip poplar). Instead, I decided to stack the wood up near the bonfire pit, and use it for bonfires. I am very glad I made this decision, since as I started stacking it, I realized that carpenter ants were thoroughly enjoying the wood. I decided to snap a few pictures while I could. I have to say that I found them pretty fascinating to watch.

To be honest, I first thought that they were termites, but after a little investigation on Wikipedia, I quickly determined that they are carpenter ants. I also learned that carpenter ants like moist wood, and since this tree was partially in the creek, I am sure they liked it very much. I am a little curious whether they will stay there now that I have stacked it up, and it won’t be so wet.