Periodical cicadas will emerge in 2024. Here’s what you need to know about these buzzing bugs.

Periodical cicadas aren’t present every spring, but when they emerge, they come in noisy, vibrant hordes. This year, trillions of these beady-eyed insects are expected to appear in several US states. Here’s what you I need to know about cicadas.

Periodic cicadas

There are two types of periodic cicadas – those that appear every 13 years and those that appear every 17 years. They emerge in litters, labeled with Roman numerals.

In 2024, two litters will emerge: Brood XIX, which has a 13-year cycle, and Brood XIII, which has a 17-year cycle. These two litters have not been matched since 1803, according to the survey from the University of Connecticut.

Brood XIX will appear in parts of the Midwest and Southeast, while Brood XIII will be seen primarily in Illinois.

Cicadas emerge from underground when the ground reaches 64 degrees, cicadas expert Matthew Kasson told CBS News. Thus, cicadas in South Carolina may emerge in April, when temperatures begin to rise, while those in colder climates, such as the upper Midwest, may not emerge until June.

In 2024, they are expected in May or early June, depending on location, according to Ken Johnson, a horticulture educator at the University of Illinois.

How long do cicadas live above ground?

Cicadas spend most of their lives underground and emerge at the end of the 13- or 17-year cycle. When they emerge, their job is to reproduce.

To attract mates, male cicadas begin to buzz loudly – ​​which is why the cicadas’ presence is accompanied by a loud buzzing sound. They begin this process about four to five days after emerging, according to Johnson.

Females flap their wings to signal to males that they want to mateKasson said.

Females lay their eggs on woody plants, using their ovipositor, or egg-laying organ, to inject about 10 to 20 eggs into the branches. Females can lay about 500 to 600 eggs, Johnson said.

The eggs hatch about six weeks after being laid, and the babies fall to the ground, eventually burying themselves in the soil, where they will remain for 13 or 17 years.

Their parents, however, die shortly after the mating process, which only lasts about a month above ground.

Are cicadas dangerous?

While the emergence of trillions of bugs Viewed from the ground may seem apocalyptic, cicadas pose no threat to humans or other animals.

However, they molt when they emerge, leaving behind their crunchy exoskeletons. And when they die, they can smell like roadkill, according to Johnson.

Wild animals like birds or snakes can eat cicadas and it is usually not dangerous to do so. Sometimes pets eat them too.

“They are non-toxic to pets. They will not sting or bite your pet,” Dr. Cynthia Gonzalez of Family Pet Animal Hospital recently told CBS Chicago. “The only problem it would pose for your pet is if they ingested a large amount of them, or if they were a smaller dog if they ate a small piece of the exoskeleton – sometimes this can really irritate their gastrointestinal tract.”

Johnson warns against using insecticides to try to keep cicadas off plants because they are not effective and animals that eat cicadas could be harmed by the chemicals.

Can you eat cicadas?

Humans can also eat cicadas, Johnson says. They are best eaten as adults, after molting but before their exoskeleton hardens. People allergic to shellfish should avoid eating cicadas.

Some cicadas. however, it may be infected with a sexually transmitted fungus called Massospora cicadina, Kasson told CBS News. It’s unclear what the fungus does to organisms that eat infected cicadas.

The fungus occupies a third of the cicada’s body, replacing it with a calcareous plug. Their genitals fall off and they become hypersexual – although they can no longer reproduce.

These so-called “zombie cicadas” continue their normal routines despite being taken over by a fungus, Kasson said.

“We know that many animals are devouring these cicadas as they emerge – snakes and birds. Is it possible that they are affecting the animals that eat them? Yes, it is possible.” But, he said, less than 5% of cicadas are infected with the fungus and researchers have not yet seen any impact on other wildlife.

What do cicadas eat?

Cicadas use trees and shrubs for nutrition. They pierce small branches and remove minerals and some carbohydrates from the plants’ water, according to experts from the University of Wisconsin La Crosse.

Johnson advises not planting new trees before periodic cicadas appear, because cicadas can damage them. If you have small trees and shrubs, you can place netting around them to keep cicadas out—just make sure the openings are no larger than 1/4 inch so the insects can’t get in.

Are cicadas grasshoppers?

Contrary to popular belief, cicadas are not “plague locusts.” They’re not even grasshoppers, which eat plants.

“People really shouldn’t worry. Cicadas are not defoliating insects and have nothing to do with grasshoppers,” says Sandy Liebhold, a research entomologist at the Forest Service Northern Research Station in Morgantown, West Virginia. “They don’t eat your plants, vegetables or even tree leaves. They are only emerging to mate and lay eggs.”

Most trees that cicadas eat will be fine, according to Purdue University.