How to Track the Appearance of 17-Year-Old Cicadas This Year
If you live in Indiana, western Ohio, eastern Pennsylvania, or anywhere near DC, brace yourself for a rare and bizarre phenomenon this spring: the arrival of the Brood X cicadas that have waited underground for the past 17 years. …
Periodic cicadas ( Magicicada species) live underground as larvae for 13 or 17 years, depending on the species. When it’s time for them to produce the next generation, they emerge, molt, mate, and die within a few furious weeks. When it is their year, the trees around them become covered in giant beetles. This whole phenomenon is either disgusting or exciting, depending on who you ask. (Okay, maybe both). The emergence has not yet begun this year, but it is expected to start in the next month or so when the earth warms up.
If you think you last heard of 17-year-old cicadas less than 17 years ago, it’s because each brood has its own territory. You can see their map here . In western Pennsylvania where I live, I saw Brood VIII emerge in 2002 and then in 2019. I won’t see him appearing this year, as the larvae that turn 17 are not the ones that live here.
To track and document cicadas in your area, download the Cicada Safari app (free for Android and iOS) from Mount St. Joseph University. Right now, you can check the map for spawning, and as soon as your local cicadas begin to appear, you can photograph them for scientists to study.
Even if you are not in Brood X territory, sometimes cicadas do not correctly time them and appear several years earlier or later. Until then, check out the brood maps here and see if you expect some rare visitors next year.
This post was originally published in May 2019 in conjunction with the arrival of Brood VIII, and has been updated on March 19, 2021 with updated links and more information on Brood X cicadas.