babble » blogs » Strollerderby
Strollerderby
Kids and Summer: Beware the Cicada
After a 13-year absence, periodic cicadas are making a triumphant return this year to a lawn near you
They’re baaaaaack.
Periodic cicadas are coming back to life on a lawn near you this season. They were last seen around 1998 and in some areas they might number as many as 1.5 million per acre. If you don’t recognize them by their creepy appearance with red eyes and cigar-shaped bodies, you should be able to hear them without a problem: male cicadas can be deafenigly loud and buzzy in an attempt to woo the opposite sex.
This year’s cicada’s are on a 13-year-cycle and will mostly be plaguing the southern half of the United States. Don’t worry, northerners, you’ll get your turn when the 17-year-locust-like insects make their return in due time.
The insects are harmless, but are sure to give the willies to countless children as they attempt to get a taste of warm weather outdoors in their bare feet this summer.
Fortunately the above-ground life of cicadas only ranges from a few weeks to a few months. Also fortunate for kids in the south? Periodic cicadas are slightly smaller than the annual variety.
Unfortunate for everyone? They exist and they’re ready for their close-up.
Do you get icked out by cicadas?
Image: Wikipedia
Go Back To Strollerderby
13 Comments
Ri-chan commented on May 09 11 at 8:53 pmI always liked catching them as a kid lol
Leanne commented on May 10 11 at 12:31 amYou do know that there are cicadas every year, right? We have a couple in a jar from last summer.
Meredith Carroll commented on May 10 11 at 12:53 am@Leanne — There are 7 different species of cicada. The one I’ve written about above only comes out once every 13 years.
Becky commented on May 10 11 at 9:08 amThey do only come out every 13 years, but there are different “broods” (like families) of the same species and the timing is a little different for each one. So each brood only comes out every 13 years, but there can be a different brood come out every year.
(Had to google that one, because we had cicadas here a couple years ago, and now they are out in full force again!)
diane commented on May 10 11 at 9:18 ambeware the cicada? really? you say they are harmless but this whole write up you sound scared of them. most of the kids i know are fascinated by them and interested in their life cycle. i don’t understand this “unfortunate for everyone” stuff.
Meredith Carroll commented on May 10 11 at 11:21 am@Diane — They creep me out, always have, especially when they come out en masse. I tell myself to beware, even if they can’t harm me physically.
@Becky — There is also a 17-year species as well as an annual, etc. Seven different kinds in all.
Leanne commented on May 10 11 at 5:53 pm@Diane, yes, that’s what I was referring to. THanks for the extra info.
lam commented on May 10 11 at 7:48 pmIcked out? No way! They are so cool! Their cases are cool, and watching them emerge is super cool! They are a very bright green and their wings are still soft and wet. Plus, they provide a fantastic opportunity to teach the kids about the life cycle of insects, and the basics of metamorphosis from larvae to adults, and also the acoustic properties of their sounds. Then when they die, we collect them and mount them in a shadow box along with their cases.
the muskrat commented on May 13 11 at 8:24 amThey were awful in Tennessee 26 years ago…I remember them well from my childhood! I don’t remember the ones from 13 years ago, but I drank a lot in 1998.
Alexis commented on May 30 11 at 9:57 pmI just went to Tennessee and experienced the year of the cicadas, I hated them! One landed in a kids hair, so I flipped out, and ran into a bench and have a huge bruise. I’m from Michigan , so my aunt Lisa old me and my other cousins from Michigan that were also screaming, that people could tell we were from Michigan.lol!
HelaineNJ commented on Aug 08 11 at 8:53 pmYeah, I thought a sparrow flew into my house. My boyfriend screamed like a little girl. This thing wa HUGE!!!! I thought it was a bat at first. The worst part was after it flew in, I didnt know where it went. CREEPY. At 3am my boyfriend got up to go to the rest room and let out a scream like an 8 year old girl. Were not used to 5″ bugs in NJ. Today I saw another smaller one outside, YUK!
Laura commented on Aug 09 11 at 11:33 amI agree that they are disgusting! Gross looking, and her in Georgia they get incredibly loud! My 2 and a half year old daughter doesn’t like the sound, but I pretend not to dislike them so that she is not afraid lol. Now, she wants to “go see’” them, lol, which is what led us to this sight so she could see a picture.
Ahmed commented on Mar 14 12 at 11:26 pmThis was amazing to watch.I just have a qsuiteon. How do the males know which one of them the femal is signalling to? Or do they simply approach the clicking sounds to try and mate. If that is the case, why compete to be the loudest cicada then?I can only think of this courtship call as inducing the females to start clicking, which might be a representation of their readiness to mate and the higher probability that copulation will succeed. This means that ultimately, the male singing the loudest may not actually get to mate at all if he does not approach fast enough. Do correct me if i’m wrong..=)
Add your take:
Note: Babble is a supportive, diverse community. We encourage a range of opinions,
but any unduly hostile comments will be removed.
Comments are delayed up to 15 minutes
Lori Garcia 
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
Meredith Carroll 
Carolyn Castiglia 
Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
The Walt Disney Company supports Babble as a platform dedicated to honest, engaged, informed, intelligent and open conversation about parenting. However, the opinions expressed on this site are those of individual parents/writers and do not reflect the views of Disney. In addition, content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or safety advice.
13