European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 4, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse T 17-yr Cicada i tche Duthil to make one of its predictable visits to the northeastern Quarter of the United state that Spring. Cicadas mysterious but punctual by Mercer Cross National geographic huge and mysterious family whose ancestors lha pilgrims noted Ullh horror will pop up for one of ils infrequent but unerringly predictable visits this Spring. The expected visitors will be 17-year cicadas countless millions of them will emerge from the ground in the northeastern United slates Between mid May and Early june. The nymphs As undeveloped cicadas Are called Wilt climb tree trunks Fence posts Weed stalks and other convenient vertical objects. There they la split their skins leaving abandoned husks All Over the place and emerge soft and while within a few hours their shells will Harden and turn Black and their Orange veined wings will stiffen. Then the transformed mature insects red eyed and an Inch and a half Long will Fly to the treetops. There the males will sing their loud and seductive Maling song. Of How they la sing. For several cacophonous weeks from Dawn to dusk the noise making membranes on their Abdomens will make the insects an insistent and unavoidable presence. There s a general says Richard c. Froeschner. A smithsonian institution entomologist. In a Woods where they re abundant you have to shout to be Bui Froeschner and other entomologists Are Quick to defend the unloved cicadas. Except Lor harmless sap sucking says Froeschner these things Don t eat Gene Wood a professor of entomology at the University of Maryland goes a step further. They Don t Hurt anybody and they re not a health threat he Bays so we might As Well enjoy pm while we there Are some exceptions however. After the cicadas have mated the females Deposit 400 to 600 three abandoned buses once the Skint of periodical cicadas add a seasons decoration to a tree trunk. Oggs in slits they carve at the ends of branches in six. Or seven weeks nymphs Hatch All to the ground and Tunnel in for their 17-year burial. On a mature tree the lip of the Branch Dies but the tree is usually not harmed. Young Trees Are something else. Loss of the Branch tips a process known As flagging can weaken or kill them this can Grieve homeowners and Orchard lists alike. Wood recommends covering Young Trees with plastic mesh he prefers this method to insecticide sprays because sprays harm other forms of life. Another exception is people who go beyond common aversion to insects and suffer from an insect phobia. While cicadas neither bite nor sting their noise and numbers Combine to make a formidable presence. I can imagine it would make some people incredibly anxious to the Point where they would have anxiety attacks says Paul a. Buongiorno a Fairfax a. Psychiatrist. But somehow in the View of the entomologists the mild mannered creatures deserve a friendlier reception than they receive from an unappreciative Public. After All they re by far the longest living insects on Earth distinctive to the United states they re divided into 20 broods Brood a for number 10, is the largest of All. It s the one due to arrive in the East this Spring. Scarcely a year goes by without the appearance of a Brood somewhere. The last emergence of Brood x was in 1970. It coincided with the arrival of a Brood of 13-year cicadas relatives that live in the South and Midwest for the firs time since 1742 in a joint appearance that occurs Only every 221 years. Next show 2184. Records of Brood x Date Back to 1715. Periodical cicadas not to be confused with every late summer s common cicadas also called Harvest flies and dog Days cicadas have been known in the United Stales since 1634, when they dropped in on the pilgrims. Bui the deeply religious pilgrims misnamed the cicadas locusts thinking the insects were the ravenous Type referred to in the stories of biblical plagues use of the incorrect name persists. Many people Call them locusts confusing them with Plant devouring insects related to Grasshoppers and katydids. The unsolved mystery of the periodical cicadas is their unfailingly accurate natural Lime cock. Scientists have been trying to crack the Puzzle for centuries. They re no closer than when they started. And so once again this year Lor the t6lh time since 1715, Brood x will boisterously appear. The nymphs which have been lurking 18 to 24 inches underground for 17 years sucking Root sap. Will burst Lorth instantaneously some evening. Tho Dimo sized holes they leave in lawns gardens Liolis and sandboxes won t kill grass or anything also. In fact says the smithsonian s fro Schnor. Iho holes will catch ram and help Aerator the soil. Once above ground the cicadas will culminate their Long lives in four climatic activities they will court mate Lay eggs and die. They will bring happiness to buds which will Toast
