Cicadas - Naturalist Notes

What happens when a group of cicada males come together after being underground for 17 years sucking on tree root juice? Well, they celebrate together by sounding like a cement hammer. They are using their limited adult-time on earth to call and find a mate. YOLO right? 

This year is the year a type of cicadas, called periodical cicadas, will all come out as adults at once. These periodical cicadas are part of Brood X (pronounced brood ten). The Michigan DNR has stated, “while we don’t fully know how far the range of species extends into Michigan, they’ve been spotted in the past in Washtenaw, Genesee, Livingston, Oakland and Lenawee counties in southeastern Michigan and St. Joseph and Branch counties in the southwest”. If you want to hear their noise, check out the recent Stateside on Michigan Radio: After 17 years underground, swarms of “noisy, lusty” cicadas to emerge in SE Michigan. 

Check out the DNR website for Community Science opportunities and a list of possible locations to go “cicada hunting”. Maybe you’ll hear a symphony of them at the nature center.