After being dormant since 1999, the Brood V cicadas are set to emerge this spring. After hatching, Brood V crawled into holes deep underground where they have lived for 17 years. This spring they will emerge from the earth for one last hurrah.
Brood V cicadas, sometimes erroneously referred to as locusts, are comprised of three different cicada species: Magicicada septendecim, Magicicada septendecula and Magicicada cassinii – and they’re all set to emerge in the Northeastern region of the United States. When the soil temperature hits above 64° F their bodies will begin to warm and then, they will surface.
The cyclical nature of cicada emergence confuses some people because of the range of cycles for different broods. For example, in addition to a 17 year brood, there are annual broods and 13 year broods, and there are different broods within these cycles. For those of us old enough to remember the previous 17 year brood cycles in the Northeast *cough* they were around in 1978, 1979, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2013. Next year Brood VI of 17 year cicadas will emerge in the Southeastern United States.
The auditory memory of the male cicada’s love song – the love song of billions of male cicadas – does not easily fade. The cicadas themselves are hard miss during their gradual metamorphosis. Don’t be fooled by the word “metamorphosis”, cicadas are hardly butterflies. They don’t emerge from their former selves with beautifully painted wings, instead these large adult insects have two main bright-red bulging eyes on either side of their head and they leave a crusty-brown exoskeleton clinging to where ever they were last in their nymph form.
If you find yourself annoyed by the incessant murmur of males calling females, remember that they’re just insects singing their love songs and they’ve been waiting 17 long years to do it.
Despite their freaky-looks cicadas are completely harmless to humans, after all it’s what’s on the inside that counts – no really, it’s what’s on the inside that counts and it isn’t uncommon to find them on local menus during certain brood years. Cicada flavored ice cream anyone? For those of you new to the Northeastern United States, or not old enough to remember the endless ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch of billions of cicadas, which ceaselessly crescendos and diminishes, get ready to add a new soundtrack to your summer. If you find yourself annoyed by the incessant murmur of males calling females, remember that they’re just insects singing their love songs and they’ve been waiting 17 long years to do it.
You can stay up-to-date on the convergence of Brood V at Cicada Mania.
