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Brood X Cicada Emergence

DataDude

DataDude

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It's almost that time. When ground temperatures reach 64 degrees or so this month the grand cicada emergence will begin. The last emergence of this largest brood in the US was 2004. In Louisville there were so many you could hear them driving down the interstate inside your car with the windows closed.

I believe they will be in many THP'ers backyards including Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Nashville, Atlanta, DC, and throughout 14 states.

If you haven't golfed during a cicada emergence get ready. There are billions of them and they don't fly very well so they will land on you and bounce off of you while your playing.

Some fun facts:

Cicada's that emerge years apart only occur in the United States. Scientists are not sure why the cicada's here evolved that way.

The loud noise they make is a mating call.

They do not destroy gardens or plants and dogs love to eat them. They are high in protein. They are harmless to dogs, but they are so abundant dogs will sometimes eat so many of them they puke 😂.
 
I do not miss them. Running a bush hog with an open air cab for hours on end during cicada season was something I never want to repeat. I'll bet I had 20+ hanging on my shirt and hat at all times.
 
I enjoy the sounds of the cicada each year, a sign of summer here. I know there might be more than normal, but I like the cicadas, and I enjoy searching trees with my kids for their shells.

Quite a fascinating feat when you think about it. Sleep under ground for 13-17 years, emerge, climb up a tree, shed your skin, hope your wings work before you're eaten, makes noises for mates, mate before you're eaten, die.
 
I can deal with the drone for a bit then I hope for a cold snap to quiet them down.:ROFLMAO:
 
Do they have the cicadas in Florida? The wife and I are headed to the Miami area in 2 weeks.
 
Drumdog said:
Do they have the cicadas in Florida? The wife and I are headed to the Miami area in 2 weeks.
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No. Not that we had ever seen.
 
Some days I would trade that for the stupid black flies up here! This time of the year I bath in Deep Woods Off! 🤬
 
Drumdog said:
Do they have the cicadas in Florida? The wife and I are headed to the Miami area in 2 weeks.
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the southern 13-year cicada broods extend to about middle georgia and southern alabama

www.scientificamerican.com

Brood X Cicadas Are Emerging at Last

The Great Eastern Brood has been underground for 17 years. Here’s what the insects have been up to down there
www.scientificamerican.com www.scientificamerican.com
 
700 WLW had a segment on Cicadas that had some interesting tidbits. Since they burrow shallow in the ground new developments (17 yrs or newer) will have less of an effect due to them being destroyed during excavation. The quantity of them is estimated to 25 per square ft. and they can reach over 100 decibels.
 
I was ready in February. Tied up a bunch for the fly rod in case they were around where I'll be fishing.

20210222_085542.jpg
 
This is so interesting to me! I was reading about Brood X last week... something I've never experienced so I watched a bunch of clips on YouTube, but will definitely pay attention to any posted this year!

Incredible that these have evolved so differently in North America.
 
This gives me anxiety in a level I can’t even begin to express. I may have to medicate myself until they are gone, but I read they are here for weeks.
 
Not sure I could handle these.
 
The 2004 wasn't so crazy around here. I remember doing some work at the Kettering Foundation south of Dayton and someone brought in some deep fried cicadas. Nothing special, just salty & crunchy like you were eating the shell of a peanut.

Now 1987 was insane. I remember the bases of trees just covered in the shed exoskeletons. Then they were flying everywhere. We'd catch them an tie thread around the base of their legs and let them fly around. That was peak childhood entertainment in Kentucky...
 
Thought Brood and cicada were about to drop a sweet collaboration.
 
They don’t bite, or sting, they just make obnoxious noises 24 hrs a day for weeks on end and are everywhere. If you’re a light sleeper they are a living nightmare 😞.
 
GolferGal said:
This gives me anxiety in a level I can’t even begin to express. I may have to medicate myself until they are gone, but I read they are here for weeks.
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They're 100% harmless, but they are big a ND clunky. Just stay inside for 6 weeks is about all you can do if they are around and they bother you a lot. They cannot be avoided outdoors. When I was a kid we went walking in an old state park and their bodies were literally covering the sidewalk there were so many of them.
 
DataDude said:
They're 100% harmless, but they are big a ND clunky. Just stay inside for 6 weeks is about all you can do if they are around and they bother you a lot. They cannot be avoided outdoors. When I was a kid we went walking in an old state park and their bodies were literally covering the sidewalk there were so many of them.
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We don't get cicadas, but we've had both locust and grasshopper swarms like that. We were in Laughlin, NV one year when the locusts hit, and the sidewalks outside all the casinos were completely covered with them, crunchy sidewalks everywhere you went. It was at the same time as the Laughlin River Run (a huge annual biker event), and I can't even imagine how it was for them riding in and out!

A few years ago we got grasshoppers, same thing. I was marshaling at my home course at the time, and the fairways were just carpeted with them. They'd fly up into the cart as you were driving along and you were constantly brushing them off you. A snowbird couple flagged me down as I was driving around the course, and the lady screams "Can't you DO something about this?!?!?!?". :ROFLMAO:
 
I do not enjoy cicadas in the slightest...... not looking forward to it quite frankly. The sound is great to fall asleep too for like 3 days and then it’s just flat out annoying. As soon as one hits me in the face I’m ready to go inside. My girlfriend HATES bugs so I’m going to have to deal with that aspect all summer.

However a big bug isn’t going to stop me from golfing all summer lol
 
GolferGal said:
A friend just sent me this article...I am not even sure how to react to this, it's both horrifying and hilarious.

www.southbendtribune.com

Fungus full of psychedelic drugs could cause Indiana Brood X cicadas' butts to fall off

It sounds like a twisted mix of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and a Grateful Dead show. But John Lill promises that it’s all too real.
www.southbendtribune.com www.southbendtribune.com
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I want to know how you describe to someone what you are studying to write an article like this on, or how does one even start off on this path? 🦗🧟‍♂️
 
Still cool here. I assume the next day it hits the 80 here it will start. The end of the week is a run of 80's so it's go time in Louisville.
 
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