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Cicadas 2021 - Brood X


FXW176
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1 minute ago, mattie g said:

I've been wondering whether those eggs/nymphs that dropped from trees that have been since removed may not have survived if the roots they were feeding off had died.

Might not matter if the tree was removed a year or so before emergence, but there must be a point at which those roots don't provide the xylem they need. Maybe they can burrow elsewhere to find other food sources? 

We did have some trees removed once we moved in, a few leelands were damaged in the 2014 ice event we had up this way and they had to go. But I am surprised my oak tree, maples and weeping cherry have nothing on them. They are all fairly established trees, that I assume were here 17 years ago. One would think they'd be here. I cant imagine the previous owners took the time to kill them all (though the wife was a big gardener and its possible she did? LOL)

1 minute ago, Always in Zugzwang said:

Crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside!! :lol:

yummy! 

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But I am surprised my oak tree, maples and weeping cherry have nothing on them.

It me. We have an oak next to our house that is 120+years old. Or more. Not one cicada on it. Our entire yard has only the five or six shells on one tree and it is full of mature trees. My whole neighborhood along Stony Run full of mature trees, and really, no cicadas. 

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27 minutes ago, mappy said:

We did have some trees removed once we moved in, a few leelands were damaged in the 2014 ice event we had up this way and they had to go. But I am surprised my oak tree, maples and weeping cherry have nothing on them. They are all fairly established trees, that I assume were here 17 years ago. One would think they'd be here. I cant imagine the previous owners took the time to kill them all (though the wife was a big gardener and its possible she did? LOL)

I remember the pic of your beautiful weeping cherry. I'm sure it wasn't that tall 17 years ago, but I would think that, with its "skinnier" branches, that it would be desirably easier for mama cicadas back then to place those eggs in the finer branches of that type of tree than other tree types. Who knows with these buggers? I've got mature dogwoods and hollies that they totally ignore, while the nymphs and fliers routinely storm our oaks and maples.

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1 hour ago, Harv_poor said:

Just came in from a walk with my grand daughter.  In parts of our neighborhood, could definitely hear the cicada hum.  Also our driveway by the garage door looked like a cicada army died trying to invade our garage

Our garage door too!  They are covering it and a bunch of exoskeletons/carcasses everywhere at the base of the door.  More than the trees

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They have arrived here!

Hearing chorus in the distance.  Birds going crazy, ants too!

Found one on an oak tree, it was making a crackling noise as its spongy head emerged.  Several white ones and a few wingless ones.  Definitely have the dogs' attention now.

As I'm typing this on my macbook near the patio door I can hear the whirring noise that sounds like a small power tool in the distance.  We have several bird feeders untouched and no wonder!  It's like filling the dog bowls with kibble and leaving a few filets lying on the floor!  LOL

Hardly anything around the pines and spruce trees.  Probably don't like conifers.  Not that I blame 'em!  The fence line closest to maple and pin oak trees is strewn with exoskeletons.  Also seeing them by the dozen on oak leaf clusters.  Every little puff of wind a bunch of 'em fly away.  Still pretty clumsy fliers at this age.  No wonder they succumb to birds.  But they survive in numbers...

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Definitely hearing them clearly...the "chorus" is closer to me and louder now (is the "cicadar" filling in??? :D).  Don't have to strain the ears to hear them, LOL!  I walked over to the Audubon Nature Center (not far from me), and they are all over the place there as one might expect.  Several trees coated with shells and very audible. I know there are 3 "magicicada" species (septendecim, septendecula, and cassini), with the septendecim I guess being the most common and loudest with the "Phaaa-rohhhh" sound.  In one tree at the Audubon center, I was able to clearly hear the cassini ones too, with the "hissing" sound.  Got some photos, here are a couple:

319061485_CicadaLeaves.thumb.jpeg.9c2a3082875e71df5a52fa67cbb2a20b.jpeg

802754253_CicadaTree.thumb.jpeg.c68ced0bed700c19cf23bc3cc08691dc.jpeg

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5 minutes ago, BlizzardNole said:

Finally heard one in the yard briefly a while ago -- "PHAR oooooooh.....PHAR oooooooh"

I wish we could trade the horrible annual cicadas for these

This year we get "treated" to both, of course!!  I actually don't mind the annual ones so much.  At least the ones that have that sort of rapid whirring sound like shaking maracas (like a "ch-ch-ch-ch-chhhh"). But there is one kind that has sort of an annoying buzzing that sounds almost electrical which is not as pleasant.

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15 hours ago, North Balti Zen said:

Ok, lol, they are here now. Last night was apparently the signal to come on out - H20s theory likely right - needed to warm up the ground enough. We definitely have cicada song now - I see fliers - and my one tree that had a few early scouts is overrun. 

Happy for you! Meanwhile, it’s still rather empty imby 

I’ll be at my kid’s school this morning for baseball, gonna check every tree I can for the buggers lol

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In the yards around my neighborhood things are very active. Steady droning hum, trees full of shells, etc. 

But walked around the forest nearby this morning and still almost none. But they’re coming out right on the sunny edges of the forest, so probably soon. 

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Feel like I am about 7-10 days behind those of you around the 95 corridor.  Yesterday was noticeable uptick in shells found on our trees around the yard but before that it was pretty sparse.

I was explaining the lifecycle to my youngest (4th grader) and she brought up a good question.  Her question....Are these cicadas the longest living insect?  I am sure I could do a google search but just thinking about it...17 years is pretty crazy for an insect.  Longer than a lot of mammals.

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