17-year periodical cicada due

From one of the newsletters I get:

Periodical cicada will emerge in 2004. East Coast growers should be mindful that a 17-year periodical cicada is due to arrive next spring.

These pests emerge in huge numbers May through July. They are primarily pests of orchard crops, but can damage young trees and shrubs, said Sue duPont, Maryland Dept. of Ag. dir. of public information. Adults are large, have black bodies, red eyes and make a rough, buzzing call.

Darius Is this an East Coast thing or can it happen here?

I remember the cicada "outbreak" (for lack of a better word) when I was a child living in the Chicago suburbs. I was terrified of bugs and it was an awful summer for me. I would go to the public pool and they would be floating in it, the yard was full of them, and they landed on you when you went out for a walk. Kind of like giant japanese beetles! I don't know about the rest of the country, but I remember Chicago as being that way.

LimeyLisa Kay

We had our cicada emergence last summer (2002). If this is the same insect. So noisy, all day long this loud humming sound. Our damage in town was the tips of trees and shrubs. Millions of them.

They emerged from the ground, and either crawled up the tree or flew up into the branches. The tips of the branches (the last 12-18 inches) were killed. They layed their eggs in the branches and the branches would break off and drop to the ground. The eggs developed and the 'babies' went underground. Millions of cicada shells covering the ground.

In our county, some got it worse than others. I guess they will be back in 2019.

eweed, I cannot answer your question. It was just a bit I read in a newsletter, and I am not aware of the last emergence. Guess I wasn't outdoors much then.

Cicadas emerge in 13 yr. and 17 yr. cycles. Nasty little things and along with them you will get a strange looking Cicada Wasp that burrow in the ground, and attack the cicada.........never harm one of these little critters, they're your friend!!

"eyes"

Oh darius - YIKES! 17 years ago; the noise was unbelievable and the yard was covered thick! The dog ate them, would get sick and puke partially digested cicadas day and night. Guess I'd forgotten :) You are indeed correct for Maryland! Back then I lived right outside of DC and they were horrible indeed. Hoping being 35 miles outside of the city might spare us the intensity!

We had these fellows in 2002.There were so many you could hear them in the car with the windows up while driving down the road.

Uggg, look at those beady red eyes. And thank you Dea for that wonderful description of what the dogs do with them. LOL (I have a little dog that just loves beetles) I guess I'll need to muzzle my dogs if they show up here. YUCK

i can remember cicadas/locusts/whatever one spring/summer in the chicagoland area. there were so many in some areas that they had to block off the streets because of the slimy mess making cars slide and crash. and boy what a noise!!! they make good fish bait fyi.

13 & 17 year cycles? I always heard it was 7 years. We have some nearly every year but the poultry seem to keep it under control. We do seem to have years when there seems to be more than the norm tho. You can spray the trees and bugs and keep the next population down somewhat. I like to hear a few of them but agree that sometimes the din is unpleasant. I guess living on a farm with poultry has prevented us from living thru what some of you have lived with at times.

Check out the thread on the Brugs Forum - Brugs and Cicadas, who wins. Lots of interesting info. Also some links - one with the dates of upcoming infestations.