This year marks the emergence of the 17-year cycle of Cicadas (Brood X) in our area. The evenings sitting in the backyard or enjoying the outdoors will be accompanied by the songs of the cicada. While nice in the beginning, the constant loud sound of the male cicada (the female makes a less obtrusive sound by viberating their wings) can eventually get on your nerves, especially in years of large outbreaks.
I’m sure you have heard many people refer to the cicada as Locusts, but in fact they are not related. Locusts are members of the grasshopper family. The misuse of the term can be traced back to the early colonists of North America who had never encountered cicadas before and assumed they were the same as the Locusts seen in Europe that destroyed plants and vegetables.
The cicada itself is harmless to people other than the noise, but can be a hazard for trees. It is recommended that if you are going to plant trees this year, it would be best to wait until mid-June or even July. Any earlier and you run the risk of losing the young tree because the cicada drink (eat) a substance called xylem, or sap, found in the tree itself. If you must plant, another good option is to cover your trees with netting to help deter the hungry critters. No matter what, your vegetables and flowers are safe from being destroyed. The cicada is easily fooled and may land on you if you are using a mower or power tool thinking the noise is another cicada calling to them. It might spook you, but there is really nothing to worry about so just flick them off and return to your work or let them ride along. of course if you are really adventurous you can just pull the wings off and grill them for a snack.
The cicada is a favorite snack for animals, including your dog. Don’t worry as it will not harm your pet. If you are lucky enough to have squirrels or wild turkeys around your property they will also help eliminate some of the unwanted visitors. Fish will go crazy for a good cicada meal, meaning the cicada make great free bait during the time of an outbreak. Feeding cicada to a fish is like serving a turkey to a Pilgrim in November; they just can’t turn it down. So leave the crawlers at home and let those big bass fight over your cicada-laden hook.
We always have cicadas in our area every year, but you never really notice their presence until the singing just gets to be too much on your ears. In certain years, of which this is one, we have a lot more due to the reproduction and evolvement cycle. How do you know the difference between an annual cicada and one from the 17 year cycle? By color. The normal cicada population in our area usually has a green coloration with green eyes. The 17 year cicada will have an all black body with orange wings and legs with red eyes.
Thankfully, the cicadas will only be around for a month maybe two before they reproduce and fade away.
