After hiding underground for the last 17 years, billions of cicadas will take to the skies this summer, from Tennessee to Cape Cod.
These cicadas, known as Brood XIV, will cover more of the U.S. than any other 17-year brood. They are also the original brood from which all other 17-year broods branched off.
After surfacing in May and June, these cicadas will issue their noisy, chirping mating call for just a few short weeks before laying eggs and dying. Their offspring will remain dormant underground for another 17 years.
Cicadas surface all at once to overwhelm their predators, ensuring that at least some insects survive and reproduce. They provide such a bounty of food to squirrels, lizards, birds, and other creatures that their emergence can send ripples through the food web.
One study found that after cicadas surface, cuckoos, blue jays, and red-bellied woodpeckers grow in number. Another showed how, by supplying more food to birds, cicadas allow caterpillars to multiply — and inflict more damage on oaks.
As the planet warms, cicadas may shift their timing. A study in Japan found that hotter weather is causing the insects to emerge earlier in the year. And over the long term, warming may shorten the number of years that cicadas hide underground.
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