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The Cicadas Are Going To Take Over! :P
#1
Cspace 
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 08:15 PM
| QUOTE |
| Get ready, Brood X is coming. This May billions of black, shrimp-size bugs with transparent wings and beady red eyes will carpet trees in the U.S. from the eastern seaboard west through Indiana and south to Tennessee. By the end of June they'll be gone, not to be heard from or seen again for 17 years. "Many people view them with horror or as an aberration and don't appreciate that they are a natural part of our eastern forests," said John Cooley, a cicada expert at the University of Connecticut in Storrs. The bugs belong to the largest group, or brood, of periodical cicadas—insects that spend most of their lives as nymphs, burrowed underground and sucking sap from tree roots. They emerge once every 17 years, transform into adults, do the business of reproduction, and then die. The cacophony of their courtship ritual disturbs suburban tranquility, and their nests can kill young tree branches. Females make slits in the branches and deposit their eggs inside. The process leaves many treetops with brown, dangling limbs flapping in the wind. In addition to being a nuisance, the mass emergence aerates the soil, provides a feast to thousands of predators, prunes the treetops, and provides a pulse of nutrients into the environment, scientists say. There are at least 12 broods of 17-year cicadas plus another three broods that emerge every 13 years. "A brood is a class year, like the graduates of 2004 who will be graduating this May," said Gene Kritsky, a biologist and cicada expert at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati, Ohio. A brood emerges almost every year somewhere, sometimes overlapping with others. But none of the emergences matches the pure size of Brood X, which includes three cicada species: Magicicada septendecim, Magicicada cassini, and Magicicada septendecula. Keith Clay, a biologist at Indiana University in Bloomington is engaged in a long-term study of the Brood X cicadas. He said people's reaction to the 17-year phenomenon runs from disgust to awe. "Some people leave town and go west where there are no cicadas. Other people plan camping trips timed in the middle of the outbreak, because they want to experience it in its full intensity," he said. Seventeen-Year Cycle The emergence of the cicadas marks the beginning of the last weeks of life for nature's longest-lived insects. Six to eight weeks after a female adult cicada performs her last, dying act—excavating a nest in a young tree branch and laying her eggs—her eggs hatch and the nymphs fall to the ground. The cicada nymphs keep heading down, first grubbing on grass roots and then tunneling about 12 inches (30 centimeters) deeper to where they feed on small tree roots for the next 17 years. "If you dig in the right place, you can find 30 to 50 nymphs in a hole about a foot square [0.1 square meter]," Cooley said. After the cicadas have counted 17 years—"we really don't know how they count the years," Kritsky said—they are ready to emerge, which usually happens in late spring when the soil reaches a temperature of about 64° Fahrenheit (18° Celsius). When twilight of their emergence day hits, the one-inch-long (2.5-centimeter-long) nymphs crawl out of their holes and up just about anything vertical—trees, barbecues, walls, tombstones. Firmly latched onto the surface of their choice, the nymphs begin their overnight transformation into adults: youthful skin breaks open, milky-white cicada emerges, wings flush out, and the body darkens as it outer shell hardens. This emergence also marks the beginning of a huge feast. "It's well known that pretty much everything starts chowing down on cicadas," Clay said. Dogs, cats, birds, squirrels, deer, raccoons, mice, ants, wasps, and, yes, humans make a meal of the insects. According to Kritsky, the best time to eat a cicada is just after they break open their youthful skin. "When you eat them when they're soft and mushy, when they come out of their skin, they taste like cold, canned asparagus," he said. Some scientists believe the mass emergence of the cicadas is part of a survival strategy. With so many of them, they collectively satiate their predators within a few days. Then the billions left uneaten are free to mate. The business of finding a mate and reproducing is the sole purpose of the cicadas' short existence above the ground. It begins with the males flying to a sunny tree and, with thousands of their buddies, beating out a tune on their undersides. "It's a high-energy activity, and they, much like a lizard basking in the sun, orient themselves to maximize sun exposure, which maximizes body temperature, which allows them to sing more vigorously and louder," Clay said. When a male successfully attracts the attention of a nearby female, she will flick her wings as he finishes his song. A courtship dance ensues, with the male continuing to sing up until the physical act of copulation. Shortly after mating, the male usually keels over and dies. The female buzzes off to excavate nests in a young twig for her 600 or so eggs. Once her egg supply is exhausted, the female dies. Six to eight weeks later, the eggs hatch and the 17-year cycle begins anew. Cicada Studies As this mass emergence of big black bugs strikes fear and awe in suburbia, the scientific community is ready to learn more about them. One of the scientists' big questions is what impact the bugs have on the environment. Indiana University's Clay will cover some trees with netting so that the cicadas will not be able to mate and lay their eggs and thus the nymphs will not be able to burrow beneath the trees and feast on their roots for 17 years. "If we eliminate cicadas from an area, does it have a significant effect on the forest, or is it a minor noise in the system?" Clay said. Within a few years, Clay hopes that a comparison of the health of the trees will yield an answer. In the years to come, College of Mount St. Joseph's Kritsky will be looking at why some cicadas emerge early in their cycle, as did several hundred thousand Cincinnati members of Brood X in 2000. The outbreak was big enough for the cicadas to satiate their predators, sing, mate, and lay eggs. "If [the year 2000 Cincinnati nymphs] come out in 2017, we will have seen the evolution of a whole new brood," Kritsky said. "That's cool." |
Can't wait
MultiQuote
#2
GM8
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 08:19 PM
Hmmm,
I found that quite interesting. The only thing that I don't like are Cicada Killers. Now those babies are pretty wicked. They're like hornets, but much bigger; and their sting is much much worse, lol. But overall, an interesting topic, Cspace.
GM8
I found that quite interesting. The only thing that I don't like are Cicada Killers. Now those babies are pretty wicked. They're like hornets, but much bigger; and their sting is much much worse, lol. But overall, an interesting topic, Cspace.
GM8
www.patent-assistant.com
#3
Neraphym
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 08:25 PM
Aw crap, thats this year! Of all the years... I live in Pittsburgh, too. I'm in the dead centre of it all. Eeeeeep! Time to use that snowblower in conjunction with some katanas and a flamethrower. Or will a squirt gun do the job?
Neraphym Archaeon
GWAMM
GWAMM
#4
Killerconvic
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 08:39 PM
Time to buy a tennis racket..
Sam's gay
#5
Cspace
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 08:57 PM
| QUOTE (GM8 @ Apr 5 2004, 03:18 PM) |
| Hmmm, I found that quite interesting. The only thing that I don't like are Cicada Killers. Now those babies are pretty wicked. They're like hornets, but much bigger; and their sting is much much worse, lol. But overall, an interesting topic, Cspace. GM8 |
Yeah, cicada killers are the worst hornets I've ever actually seen (assuming they're hornets, they at least look like them). Luckily they aren't related to cicadas, they just look kinda similar in a way.
Incase someone didn't know, cicadas are harmless. If during the summer, you've heard a repetative buzzing sound in one place in a tree (the best way I can describe it), that is a cicada. They won't bite, sting, attack, smother, eat, perforate, burn, or drown anyone (I think I covered everything
)*. They may look dangerous, but they're actually pretty neat (some people actually catch them and bring them to school as "pets" during this time). I think I'll do that and scare some people. 
*OM: Ya dinnae put 'annoy' in that list, did ya?
#7
Killerconvic
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 09:22 PM
I believe they just nibble the ends of trees off, which is great for me. I have to rake, and they will make my job easier. I just want some hitting practice.
Sam's gay
#8
Res
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Posted 05 April 2004 - 09:27 PM
Aye! About a year ago, cicadas took over Louisiana! It was the coolest thing i have ever heard.. there was like.... a really high pithced humming... kinda sounded like aliens were taking over 
and it went on for about 1-2 weeks....
BUT THESE WERE GREEN!!! Black ones?? soo cool!!!! lol
Try to catch some and exterminate them in the most creative ways!
MX
and it went on for about 1-2 weeks....BUT THESE WERE GREEN!!! Black ones?? soo cool!!!! lol
Try to catch some and exterminate them in the most creative ways!
MX
Overwhelmed as one would be, placed in my position.
Such a heavy burden now to be "The One".
Born to bear and read to all the details of our ending
To write it down for all the world to see.
Such a heavy burden now to be "The One".
Born to bear and read to all the details of our ending
To write it down for all the world to see.
#9
paperboy101
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Posted 06 April 2004 - 03:12 PM
some of the best ways to get rid of cicadas are:
1. throw um i a log chipper
2. wrap them in tin foil and throw them in a burn-barrel
3.bricks....need i say more
4. put them in a old tent ,soak the tent in gas,light the tent on fire
5.golf clubs
6.steam roller
1. throw um i a log chipper
2. wrap them in tin foil and throw them in a burn-barrel
3.bricks....need i say more
4. put them in a old tent ,soak the tent in gas,light the tent on fire
5.golf clubs
6.steam roller
#10
cjjones
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Posted 07 April 2004 - 09:23 AM
We get cicadas out and singing every year in NZ, but it's not as bad as that article says - there are probably just a couple of thousand and the only way you tell they're there is by the incessent whining for most of summer. But they might be that bad on the other sid of the world...
#11
Cspace
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Posted 07 April 2004 - 06:42 PM
| QUOTE (cjjones @ Apr 7 2004, 04:23 AM) |
| We get cicadas out and singing every year in NZ, but it's not as bad as that article says - there are probably just a couple of thousand and the only way you tell they're there is by the incessent whining for most of summer. But they might be that bad on the other sid of the world... |
We always have cicadas also, but once every 17 years they swarm for a reason that is unknown. From what I hear they are everywhere during this time (even inside buildings and schools). Can't wait...
KC edit: *Siezes the opportunity to edit one of C'sp's posts
* You...are crazy... You want them in your school? 
#13
Muler
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Posted 08 April 2004 - 01:01 PM
Whoah whoah...so these things are hornets?! I'm in Jersey near the shore...this isn't good...
And is it gonna be like the Locust plauge of the 10 plauges?
And is it gonna be like the Locust plauge of the 10 plauges?
-The Infamous-
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...Retired...Not returned
#14
Goto
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Posted 08 April 2004 - 01:10 PM
To my knowledge Australia just gets the regular constant cicadas, although considering I heard about these broods 3 minutes ago I could be wrong .
Sounds pretty cool, although I think it'd freak me out a bit to see that many at once.
.Sounds pretty cool, although I think it'd freak me out a bit to see that many at once.
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