Soon the infernal racket outside Columbus residents’ windows could be something other than traffic or construction. It could be the mating call of the 17-year cicada.
The 17-year cicadas differ from the annual summertime cicadas. The 17-year cicadas – which can grow up to 2 and a half to 3 inches – crawl from the ground, where they have resided for the last 17 years, and wreak havoc on society from mid-May to the first weeks of July.
“They don’t bite,” said OSU entomologist George Keeney. “They just distress people with their incessant noise, large size and orange-demonic eyes.”
Warm weather brings the cicadas out, and this spring has been extremely warm. Cincinnati, which is usually two weeks ahead of Columbus, has already begun to see the bugs. Columbus will not be far behind.
“They should be quite common around Memorial Day,” Keeney said.
Cicadas are known for the sound of their mating call, which the males make 24 hours a day. Although the noise is just a vibration of the bugs’ drum membrane, the sound produced is a loud screeching noise.
“I would consider it a droning sound,” Keeney said.
They make the most noise during daylight, quieting down for the night. Yet this does not leave much solace. Keeney said depending on the density of the cicadas, their sound can be almost deafening.
OSU entomologist Dave Horn said swarms can get so loud people can not communicate with each other while in a swarm.
“It’s the equivalent of being in a construction site,” Horn said.
This year millions of cicadas will blanket the state, their density reaching as high as 1.5 million per acre.
Ohio will not be, however, the only state to feel their presence. Delaware, Illinois, Georgia, Indiana, Maryland, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia will all have the pleasure of their company.
There are 12 types, or broods, of cicadas, found in different areas of the country. This year’s brood, brood X or 10, is the largest. Millions upon millions of cicadas will swarm the country this year, and the worst thing is not much can be done about them.
“It’s something that you just have to put up with,” Keeney said. “There’s no way you can control them.”
The cicadas will mostly infest wooded areas and make their homes on the end of tree branches. Here the females slit the wood and lay their eggs. Although the bugs don’t bite or cause much damage, their slitting and egg laying damages branches and can kill young trees.
It is speculated cicadas come out in such large numbers to avoid being killed off by predators, such as birds, dogs, snakes and spiders. With such a big emergence, predators can eat their fill of cicadas and not make a dent in the population. Another thing to get used to: more bugs means more birds. Birds swooping down to pluck a ripe cicada will become a familiar sight.
But there is some good news for students who live on campus: there might not be as many cicadas.
Keeney said an area really has to be wooded to have a significant cicada population. Since there has been so much construction on campus, the tree roots the cicadas feed on while underground have been damaged, or the cicadas themselves have been uprooted. Keeney said the largest populations near campus will probably be on the agriculture campus and near the river.
Still, the effect of the cicadas will be felt by everyone, although in some places they might prove to be more than just a mild annoyance.
The world-renowned Memorial Golf Tournament held at Muirfield Village Golf Club in nearby Dublin could be adversely affected.
In 1987, the last time the cicadas reared their ugly heads, it affected the golfers. This year, the tournament staff is ready for the bugs and do not see them as a large threat.
“We’re concerned to a certain degree,” said Tom Sprouse, media director of Muirfield.
Sprouse said he hopes the cicadas arrive soon so they will taper off by the time of the tournament, which begins May 26. Sprouse also said the Muirfield staff is not extremely concerned because the course does not have an extensive amount of trees.
Despite this, there are a few coping methods the staff will use to deal with the bugs. These include possibly passing out ear plugs to spectators, using backpack blowers to blow cicadas from the greens and sweeping the cicadas from paths. Sprouse said they likely will not use pesticides.
Overall, Sprouse said the staff is ready.
“We have to be prepared for whatever,” Sprouse said. “We’ll deal with it as it happens.”
Horn says there are a few things people should keep in mind when dealing with cicadas. First, the bugs are not poisonous, but people should not let pets or children eat many of them because doing so can cause digestive problems.
Secondly, people should not be afraid of the cicadas. Horn said when people are driving and get caught in a swarm – which usually only happens in the country – people have the tendency to panic and end up in a ditch. He said if someone finds himself or herself in this scenario, he or she should turn on the wipers and keep driving.
“It’s an interesting phenomenon that everyone should revel in. It’s truly one of nature’s wonders,” Keeney said.
Despite being a mild annoyance, Keeney and Horn said students should take the bugs with a grain of salt and enjoy the spectacle.
“Once every 17 years is kind of interesting,” Horn said. “It happens so seldom, you might as well get out and marvel at something you might only see three or four times in a lifetime. So sit back and relax, and enjoy them as best you can.”
