Periodical cicadas emerged in southwest Ohio this year
You may have heard about the 17-year cicada (also known as periodical cicada) emergence happening in Ohio this year. This influx of insects is part of the world’s largest insect emergence and will only last about six weeks before the adults all die, the eggs hatch, and the babies burrow underground for the next 17 years! To observe this phenomenon, you will have to drive to southwestern Ohio or wait until our local 17-year cicadas emerge–in 2033!
Periodical cicada
Millions of these insects will crawl from the ground to sing, mate, and lay their eggs before they die. Here in northeast Ohio we will not see any cicadas until our familiar annual cicadas (as pictured below) emerge in mid to late summer. Annual cicadas (also known as dog day cicadas) emerge every year and their buzzing song is a familiar part of every summer. These large insects are black with green highlights and emerge every year to mate, but most parts of Ohio also have populations of 17-year cicadas.
Annual cicada
Did you know there are four different broods of 17-year cicadas in Ohio? Each brood is designated by a Roman numeral, and Brood X emerged in southwestern Ohio this year. Many of you likely remember when Brood V emerged in 2016 in northeastern and eastern Ohio. The other two broods in Ohio are on a smaller scale: Brood VIII emerges around the Youngstown region and last emerged in 2019; Brood XIV emerges along the Ohio River from Marietta to Cincinnati and last emerged in 2008.